title: Impact of a community based health-promotion programme in 2- to 9-year-old children in Europe on markers of the metabolic syndrome, the IDEFICS study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  One objective of 'Identification and prevention of Dietary-and lifestyle-induced health EFfects In Children and infantS', the IDEFICS study, was to implement a community-oriented childhood obesity prevention intervention in eight European countries.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To assess the effect of an obesity primary prevention programme on metabolic markers.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study had a non-randomized cluster-experimental design. In each country, children were recruited from distinct communities serving as intervention and control regions. Health examinations were done during 2007-2008 before the intervention (T0 ) and during 2009-2010 (T1 ). Children with results available from T0 and T1 on blood pressure, waist circumference and at least one blood-marker (fasting glucose, insulin, HOMA-IR, HbA1c, HDL- and LDL-cholesterol, triglycerides, C-reactive protein) were included. A metabolic syndrome (MetS) score was calculated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 7,406 children (age 2-9.9 years) of the 16,228 participating at T0 provided the necessary data. No effect of the intervention was seen on insulin, HOMA-IR, CRP or the MetS score. Overall fasting glucose increased less in the intervention than in the control region, a pattern driven by three of the eight countries and more pronounced in children of parents with low education. Overall, HbA1c and waist circumference increased more and blood pressure less in the intervention regions.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We observed no convincing effect of the intervention on markers of the metabolic syndrome. We identified diverse patterns of change for several markers of uncertain relation to the intervention.
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics, Institute of Clinical Sciences, Sahlgrenska Academy at Gothenburg University, Gothenburg, Sweden.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mårild
authors.affiliation: Unit of Epidemiology and Population Genetics, Institute of Food Sciences, Avellino, Italy.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Russo
authors.affiliation: National Institute for Health Development, Estonian Centre of Behavioral and Health Sciences, Tallinn, Estonia.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Veidebaum
authors.affiliation: Research and Education Institute of Child Health, Strovolos, Cyprus.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tornaritis
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: De Henauw
authors.affiliation: Department of Movement and Sport Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: De Bourdeaudhuij
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics, University of Pécs, Pécs, Hungary.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Molnár
authors.affiliation: Growth, Exercise, Nutrition and Development (GENUD) Research Group, University of Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain.
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Moreno
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics, Institute of Clinical Sciences, Sahlgrenska Academy at Gothenburg University, Gothenburg, Sweden.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bramsved
authors.affiliation: Leibniz Institute for Prevention Research and Epidemiology - BIPS, Bremen, Germany.|Institute for Public Health and Nursing Research (IPP), Faculty for Human and Health Sciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Peplies
authors.affiliation: Institute for Public Health and Nursing Research (IPP), Faculty for Human and Health Sciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany.|Institute of Statistics, Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science, University Bremen, Bremen, Germany.
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Ahrens
mesh_terms: D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D001794:Blood Pressure; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002097:C-Reactive Protein / Q000378:metabolism; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D008078:Cholesterol, LDL / Q000097:blood; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D005060:Europe / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007328:Insulin / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000097:blood / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D063766:Pediatric Obesity / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications / Q000517:prevention & control*; D015995:Prevalence; D011322:Primary Prevention / Q000379:methods*; D012307:Risk Factors; D040242:Risk Reduction Behavior; D014280:Triglycerides / Q000097:blood; D055105:Waist Circumference; D044465:White People
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D001786:Blood Glucose; D008078:Cholesterol, LDL; D007328:Insulin; D014280:Triglycerides; D002097:C-Reactive Protein
keywords: Childhood obesity; metabolic syndrome; prevention