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May 10, 2007Childhood Obesity Intervention Shows Promising Results |
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From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Shape Up Somerville: Eat Smart. The multi-faceted program was designed and implemented by researchers from the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University and the Tufts University School of Medicine in close collaboration with the community. The first year results reflect efforts of children, parents, teachers, school food service providers, health care providers and policy makers, as well as city departments, before-and-after school programs, restaurants, and local media outlets to provide and promote healthy eating options and physical activity among elementary school-aged children in Somerville, Massachusetts. "On average, SUS reduced approximately one pound of weight gain over eight months for an eight-year-old child. This may seem small for an individual, but on a population level this reduction in weight gain, observed through a decrease in BMI z-score, would translate into large numbers of children moving out of the overweight category. Such a reduction is important given today's obesigenic environment where the shifts continue to be observed in the opposite direction," says Economos. A key element of the intervention was the work done in collaboration with Somerville schools. Parents and community members were encouraged to participate through school, after- school, and community events. School nurses, pediatricians, and family physicians were trained to address issues of overweight and obesity among children. SUS also collaborated with 21 local restaurants to develop the SUS stamp of approval, which indicates that the restaurant offers healthy menu options.
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