Considerations for a school based dietary intervention study in children

Background for OPUS

The prevention of childhood obesity has gained much interest as prevalence and awareness of its public health importance increase.

 

The main applicant of this present proposal has the pleasure of being the editor-in-chief of the scientific journal Obesity Reviews, which has published 14 systematic reviews and meta-analyses on prevention of childhood obesity since 2006 (Lobstein 2006, Brown et al. 2007, Brown & Summerbell 2008, Tucker et al. 2006, Sharma et al. 2006, Conroy et al. 2007).

 

Three more reviews on childhood obesity are currently under consideration for publication.

 

These reviews provide important analyses, conclusions, and recommendations for future trials, and reveal gaps in our knowledge, which have all either already been taken into consideration (Flynn et al. 2006, Fussenegger et al. 2008), or will be used intensively in the more detailed planning of our school-based dietary intervention study.

 

It is clear that studies targeting individual-level determinants and clinical aspects of childhood obesity have produced limited success.

 

There is growing interest in understanding the wider determinants of obesity, such as the built environment, social interactions, food marketing and prices, but much more needs to be learned.

 

In recent years, many efforts to facilitate change in dietary behaviours have been directed towards children in school, because such approaches have the capacity to reach large numbers of children simultaneously. Habitual behaviours developed in childhood may track into adulthood, with potential consequences for health later in life, and repeated exposure to healthier foods at an early age has been shown to increase the intrinsic rewards associated with their consumption.

In particular, we need to identify healthy meals that can be made attractive for children and their parents, and which can be accepted by policymakers. Another important issue is user-driven innovation, i.e. an upstream approach that makes healthy choices not only the most rational, but also the most feasible and affordable.

 

Low hedonic value of the recommended diet as a barrier to consumer acceptance

 

(Published on foodoflife.dk)