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- Title
Participation in a School‐Based Wellness Initiative Associated With Improved K‐12 Student Body Mass Index Trends.
- Authors
Head, Kathleen C.; Morella, Kristen; Lugo, Michael P.; Key, Janice D.
- Abstract
BACKGROUND: Associations between school participation in an academic medical center‐supported school‐based wellness initiative and programmatic components implemented with change in average student body mass index (BMI) over time were examined. METHODS: This was an observational study of 103 K‐12 South Carolina schools over school years 2014‐2018, classified as participating (n = 87 schools, 27,855 students) or non‐participating (n = 16 schools; 3608 students). Associations between students' BMI z‐score (BMIz) and school participation were evaluated by linear multilevel mixed‐effects modeling using data from FitnessGram and the School Wellness Checklist© (SWC), respectively. RESULTS: One‐third of the students had a BMI percentile ≥85. Average student BMIz decreased in participating schools (p =.026) and increased in non‐participating schools (p =.004) over time. For schools that participated two or more years, there was an inverse relationship between SWC score and student BMIz (p =.002) that did not differ by school type, rural/urban location, Title 1 status, or student sex. Physical activity and stress management interventions for students, as well as employee wellness and establishing a wellness committee at the school level were significantly associated with decreased average student BMIz (all p <.05). CONCLUSION: Implementation of similar comprehensive school‐based wellness programs focused on improving physical activity, stress management, and employee engagement may help prevent and reduce pediatric obesity in diverse communities.
- Subjects
SOUTH Carolina; SOCIAL participation; COLLEGE students; STATISTICS; SCIENTIFIC observation; ANALYSIS of variance; CONFIDENCE intervals; CHILDHOOD obesity; RESEARCH methodology; PHYSICAL activity; JOB involvement; HEALTH; STRESS management; CHI-squared test; SCHOOL children; BODY mass index; DATA analysis software; SECONDARY analysis
- Publication
Journal of School Health, 2023, Vol 93, Issue 7, p547
- ISSN
0022-4391
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1111/josh.13292