An Intergenerational Community Based Participatory Research (CBPR) Intervention to Reduce Appalachian Health Disparities

Nancy Schoenberg1,250 enrolled

Overview

The study purpose is to evaluate the effectiveness of a culturally appropriate, faith-placed lay health advisor intervention aimed at increasing fruit and vegetable intake and physical activity among intergenerational Appalachian individuals and families.

The developmental phase of this project incorporated community based participatory research (CBPR) principles to identify the needs and preferences of community members with regard to energy balance. In the intervention phase, this group-randomized trial administers and evaluates an intergenerational, culturally appropriate energy balance intervention aimed at increasing fruit and vegetable intake and increasing physical activity among participants in 6 distressed Appalachian counties. Faith institutions are recruited and randomized to treatment or wait-list control conditions, and participants are recruited and enrolled within those institutions. Focusing on Appalachian children, parents, and grandparents, local lay health advisors deliver a series of group presentations, adapted from We Can! and Media Smart Youth. In addition, the project provides culturally consonant leave-behind "booster" activities, including square dances, cooking classes, and community gardens.

Study Type

INTERVENTIONAL

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

PREVENTION

Masking

TRIPLE

Enrollment

1,250

Conditions

Overweight Obesity

Interventions

LHA-delivered energy balance classes/activitiesBEHAVIORAL

4-6 sessions delivered by local LHA to age-appropriate groups (i.e., children/adolescents and adults), based on We Can! And Media Smart Youth curricula.

Eligibility

Sex: ALLMin age: 8 YearsHealthy volunteers:

Medical Language ↔ Plain English

Inclusion Criteria: * Age 8 years or above * Able to provide informed consent/assent

Locations (1)

Faith Moves Mountains

Whitesburg, Kentucky, United States

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

Change in self-reported fruit and vegetable intake from baseline

Amount of fruit and vegetable intake is measured using an FFQ, pretested in focus groups comprised of members of the target population. Positive change (i.e., increasing fruit and vegetable intake) from baseline to post-test will be coded as "1," while negative or no change will be coded "0." This assessment occurs after the Early Treatment group has completed the intervention.

Time frame: Assessed approximately 4 months after baseline

Change in self-reported physical activity from baseline

Amount of physical activity is measured using instruments with demonstrated reliability and validity, pretested in focus groups comprised of members of the target population. Positive change (i.e., increasing physical activity) from baseline to post-test will be coded as "1," while negative or no change will be coded "0." This assessment occurs after the Early Treatment group has completed the intervention.

Time frame: Assessed at approximately 4 months after baseline

Change in body mass index (BMI) from baseline

Positive change (i.e., decreasing BMI when indicated, or maintaining BMI when not indicated) from baseline to post-test will be coded as "1," while negative or no change will be coded "0." This assessment occurs after the Early Treatment group has completed the intervention.

Time frame: Assessed at approximately 4 months after baseline

Secondary Outcomes

Change in stage of readiness to change each health behavior (i.e., fruit and vegetable intake, physical activity) from baseline

Stage of readiness to change is measured using instruments with demonstrated reliability and validity, pretested in focus groups comprised of members of the target population. Positive change in stage of readiness from baseline to post-test will be coded as "1," while negative or no change will be coded "0." This assessment occurs after the Early Treatment group has completed the intervention.

Data from ClinicalTrials.gov

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