Search

BACKGROUND School settings offer an opportunity to impact student health and wellness. Quality wellness policies are important in establishing strong wellness environments, but current resources to support policy development, maintenance, and dissemination are lacking. The Building Healthy Schools Program aimed to develop capacity of school districts to improve the strength and comprehensiveness of wellness policies and sustain these activities. METHODS: Fifteen school districts in Pennsylvania participated in a program to facilitate the improvement of district wellness policies and practices. Program staff provided technical assistance to evaluate wellness policies before and after program implementation. Professional development and tailored training was provided for school personnel to create sustainability. Statistical analysis was performed to evaluate policy improvement. RESULTS: Thirteen of the 15 participating districts completed a policy revision. Median strength (p =.001) and comprehensiveness (p =.002) scores improved from baseline to post‐program and there were significant improvements in most assessment sub‐sections. Some districts were hesitant to make strong language improvements due to their limited capacity (ie, staff) for implementation. Champions (n = 13; 87%) reported confidence to revise wellness policy language independently in the future. CONCLUSIONS: Technical assistance provided to districts facilitated significant improvements to wellness policy language, especially in the implementation, evaluation, and communication; critical components for policy impact on school wellness environments. In addition, participant feedback suggested an ability to sustain activities in the future. Both external (ie, technical assistance) and internal resources are needed to facilitate school districts' ongoing wellness policy improvement and implementation, including improved model wellness policy language and enforcement within schools, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND School‐level implementation of district‐level local wellness policies (LWPs) is needed to create school environments that promote nutrition and physical activity (PA). Disparities in classroom‐specific LWPs implementation were examined. METHODS: An administrator survey (N = 756 schools; 24/24 districts) included 6 classrooms LWP best‐practice items (fully/not fully implemented: restricting food celebrations or rewards, incorporating PA breaks or integrating PA in curricula, restricting withholding or using PA as punishment). A sum score (alpha =.71; elementary and middle/high examined separately) was used to examine associations with student body income (free‐and‐reduced priced meals (FARMS): ≤40%, 41‐75%, ≥75%), race/ethnicity, and school location (rural/urban/suburban), accounting for district‐level clustering, with moderation examined. RESULTS: Classroom implementation scores were: elementary = 3.1 ± 1.8 (range: 0‐6/6 items) and middle/high = 2.3 ± 1.6 (range:0‐5/5 items). Among elementary and middle/high schools, 65% and 55% had >40% FARMS, 39% and 46% had ≥50% white student body, and 24% and 23% were urban, respectively. Elementary schools with >40% of FARMS‐eligible students and middle/high schools with <25% white students reported implementing fewer items. Location was not associated with classroom practices nor was moderation observed. CONCLUSIONS: Disparities in classroom‐specific LWP best practices implementation were observed by income and race/ethnicity. Tailored support may be needed to improve classroom LWP implementation in schools serving low‐income students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND Childhood is a critical period for developing food‐related skills and knowledge, known as food literacy (FL). Schools may be an important setting for interventions aiming to improve FL in children. This systematic scoping review aimed to characterize food literacy interventions in elementary schools. METHODS: Databases (PubMed, Web of Science, and EBSCO) were searched for FL interventions in elementary schools (students aged 4‐12 years). Studies were assessed according to design, duration, theoretical underpinning, and ascertainment of FL outcome(s). Interventions were assessed according to FL competencies (functional, interactive, and critical). RESULTS: After exclusions, 116 studies were eligible for review, including 105 original interventions. Interventions ranged from 45 minutes to 4 years. Social cognitive theory was the most referenced theory and common interventions included; classroom lessons, games, school gardens, food preparation, and cooking classes. Most studies measured FL outcomes quantitatively (96%, N = 111). All studies addressed functional FL (N = 116), while 77% (N = 89) addressed interactive FL and 28% (N = 32) addressed critical FL. CONCLUSIONS: This first international review of FL programs in elementary schools found great heterogeneity in school‐based FL intervention design and measurement of FL. Few interventions addressed critical FL, which should be a focus for future interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: Children's intake of discretionary choices is excessive. This study aimed to develop a questionnaire measuring parents’ attitudes and beliefs towards limiting provision of discretionary choices, using the Health Action Process Approach model. Methods: The questionnaire items were informed by the Health Action Process Approach model, which extends the Theory of Planned Behaviour to include both motivational (intention) and volitional (post‐intention) factors that influence behaviour change. The questionnaire was piloted for content and face validity (expert panel, n = 5; parents, n = 4). Construct and predictive validity were examined in a sample of 178 parents of 4–7‐year‐old children who completed the questionnaire online. Statistical analyses included exploratory factor analyses, Cronbach's alpha and multiple linear regression. Results: Pilot testing supported content and face validity. Principal component analyses identified constructs that aligned with the eight constructs of the Health Action Process Approach model. Internal consistencies were high for all subscales, in both the motivational (Cronbach's alpha 0.77–0.88) and volitional phase (Cronbach's alpha 0.85–0.92). Conclusions: Initial results from validation tests support the development of a new questionnaire for measuring parent attitudes and beliefs regarding provision of discretionary choices to their 4–7‐year‐old children within the home. This new questionnaire can be used to gain greater insight into parents’ attitudes and beliefs that influence ability to limit discretionary choices provision to children. Further research to expand understanding of the questionnaires’ psychometric properties would be valuable, including confirmatory factor analysis and reproducibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT BACKGROUND Schools may be an effective avenue for interventions that prevent childhood obesity. I am Moving I am Learning/Choosy Kids© (IMIL/CK) is a curriculum recommended by Head Start (HS) for education in nutrition, physical activity, and healthy lifestyle habits. METHODS We formed an academic-community partnership (ACP), the Springfield Collaborative for Active Child Health, to promote prevention of childhood obesity, in part, to implement the IMIL/CK curriculum in local HS sites. The ACP included a medical school, HS program, public school district, and state health department. RESULTS Community-based participatory research principles helped identify and organize important implementation activities: community engagement, curriculum support, professional teacher training, and evaluation. IMIL/CK was piloted in 1 school then implemented in all local HS sites. All sites were engaged in IMIL/CK professional teacher training, classroom curriculum delivery, and child physical activity assessments. Local HS policy changed to include IMIL/CK in lesson plans and additional avenues of collaboration were initiated. Furthermore, improvements in physical activity and/or maintenance or improvement of healthy weight prevalence was seen in 4 of the 5 years evaluated. CONCLUSIONS An ACP is an effective vehicle to implement and evaluate childhood obesity prevention programming in HS sites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]