Changing the School Environment

University Of Colorado Denver, Aurora CO

Investigators

Linked publications & trials

Abstract

Childhood obesity is recognized as a serious public heaith issue. At least 25% of children in the US aged 6- 19 are ovenweight, and the percentage is increasing. Suboptimum diet and physical activity patterns appear to be contributing to this epidemic. It is not enough to address behavior changes alone;it is also necessary to address the environments in which these behaviors occur, including the environment at home, in school, and in the community. Children and adolescents spend a great deal of their time in school, and schools provide opportunities for eating and physical activity. It has been suggested that policy changes would be helpful in improving diet and physical activity in students. The applicant has completed the first year of the mentoring phase conducting focus groups and a pilot physical activity study to determine the physical activity status of students in the Cherry Creek School District and to obtain their opinion about the current physical activity and nutrition school environment. The evaluation process is about to end and the school district is anxious and excited to start the intervention period. The applicant is requesting to start the independent phase of the project (years 3-5). The applicant proposes to work with the school district in developing and implementing policies to positively impact the school physical activity and nutrition education environment using the pilot data accumulated during the first 2 years and to evalute the impact of these policies on physical activity levels, nutrition knowledge and the behavior of students. The impact of these policy changes on the school food service revenues will also be investigated.