The percentage of overweight children between the ages of 6 and 11 has nearly tripled in the last three decades, and rates are even higher among African Americans.Overweight children are at-risk for numerous health problems, thus effective treatments are urgently needed. This study will evaluate an innovative intervention for ethnically diverse parents (NOURISH), which focuses on helping parents role model and teach their children healthy behaviors.
Pediatric overweight is a national public health concern. The percentage of overweight children in the U.S. between the ages of 6 and 11 has nearly tripled in the last 3 decades. African American children are particularly at risk. Pediatric overweight is associated with numerous physical and psychological health problems. Moreover, overweight children are at significant risk for obesity in adulthood. Thus, a focus on pediatric overweight is an important step in the prevention of adult obesity. Despite the urgent need for pediatric overweight interventions, outcomes of some of the most rigorous treatments are, at best, mixed. Although research has found that including parents in interventions for pediatric overweight has positive effects on outcomes, parental involvement is usually limited. Moreover, relatively few studies have included sufficient numbers of lower-SES, African American participants, a group at increased risk for pediatric overweight and associated complications. This study will evaluate the efficacy of an intensive intervention targeting ethnically diverse parents of overweight, children ages 6-11 (NOURISH-Nourishing Our Understanding of Role Modeling to Improve Support and Health).
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
184
Participants in the NOURISH intervention will have 6 weekly face-to-face parent group sessions regarding healthy eating and physical activity.
Participants in the Wellness Group will have one face-to-face group meeting and information regarding healthy eating and physical activity will be provided on a regular basis via mail.
Virginia Commonwealth University
Richmond, Virginia, United States
Child BMI
Children's height and weight were measured and then plotted on the CDC Growth Charts to obtain BMI%ile for age and gender.
Time frame: Basline, Posttest
Child Feeding
The Child Feeding Questionnaire (CFQ) measured parental approaches to and attitudes about feeding their children and the subscale "concern about child's weight" is reported below in the table. The subscale score was calculated by averaging the items (subscale score range: 3 to 15, higher scores represent greater risk). To compare groups, change scores were calculated by subtracting post-test values from baseline values (negative scores indicate decline in parental concern from baseline to post-test).
Time frame: Basline, Posttest
Child Quality of Life
Pediatric Health-Related Quality of Life (PedsQL4.0) change scores from baseline to posttest We reported the Total Score. The PedsQL4.0 response scale ranges from 0 - 4. The items are reverse-scored for interpretability and higher scores indicate higher quality of life. We used the Total Score, or the mean computed as the sum of all the items over the number of items answered on all the Scales. The current report did not provide subscores.
Time frame: Basline, Posttest
Parental BMI
Height and weight were measured by trained staff and used to calculate BMI. Change scores of parental BMI from baseline to posttest were calculated to show difference between treatment arms.
Time frame: Baseline, Posttest
Parental Dietary Intake of Fat
Parents completed a 3 day dietary record which was reviewed by a dietitian and analyzed using the Nutrition Data System Software (NDS-R) to calculate parental fat intake. Change scores were calculated by subtracting post-test values from baseline values; thus, a negative score indicates a greater reduction in fat intake at post-testing.
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Time frame: Baseline, Posttest