Impact of 20 Week Lifestyle Intervention Package on Anthropometric Biochemical and Behavioral Characteristics of Schoolchildren in North India.

ABSTRACT: Childhood obesity is a public health problem worldwide. There is convincing evidence that school-based interventions are effective in managing childhood obesity. However, the nature of interventions, its impact on prevention of obesity and how they work remain poorly understood. The primary objective of this study was to examine the impact of a multicomponent lifestyle intervention on weight and body mass index (BMI) of children in a school-based setting.It is a cluster randomized trial where four schools were randomly selected and allocated to intervention and control arm equally. Of the 462 schoolchildren selected, 201 were assigned to the intervention group and 261 belonged to the control group. Children in the intervention arm received a multicomponent lifestyle package. Primary outcome measures included anthropometric measurements (weight, BMI, skinfold thickness and waist and hip circumference), whereas secondary outcomes were biochemical parameters, physical activity and dietary intake.Compared with controls and adjusting for age, sex and clustering within classes, children in the intervention group showed decrease in the weight by?-?0.08 (-0.15 to?-?0.00, p? =? 0.048) z-score units, waist circumference by?-?0.14 (-0.25 to?-?0.03, p? = ?0.01) and triceps thickness by?-?0.35 (-0.47 to?-?0.22, p?

SUBMITTER: Thakur JS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5040831 | biostudies-other | 2016 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other