Can school-based physical activity programs and policies decrease screen-time usage among youth?

Objective: Power Up for 30 (PU30) is a schoolwide intervention that encourages schools to provide an additional 30 minutes of physical activity during the school day, beyond physical education. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of PU30 on Georgia public elementary schools and their students. Methods: A total of 719 of 1320 public elementary schools in Georgia that were sent a baseline survey about school physical activity during October 2013 to September 2014 completed the survey, 160 of which were asked to complete a second survey. In the interim (March to June 2015), half (80) of these schools implemented the PU30 program. The interim surveys, which were completed during March to June 2015, assessed opportunities for student physical activity and staff member professional development focused on student physical activity. Results: Compared with schools that had not implemented the program, more schools using the PU30 program reported offering before- and after-school physical activity programs. Forty-four of 78 (57%) PU30 schools compared with 20 of 53 (38%) non-PU30 schools offered before-school physical activity programs. Likewise, more PU30 schools than non-PU30 schools offered after-school physical activity programs (35% vs 16%), and a greater proportion of students at PU30 schools compared with non-PU30 schools met fitness benchmarks: recess 5 days per week (91% [288 of 323] vs 80% [273 of 341]), offering ≥11 minutes per day of classroom-based physical activity (39% [53 of 136] vs 25% [47 of 189] for kindergarten through second grade; 20% [37 of 187] vs 6% [9 of 152] for grades 3 through 5), and receiving physical activity–related professional development time (42% [136 of 323] vs 14% [48 of 341]). Conclusions: The surveys provided a statewide picture of the physical activity opportunities offered to students and staff members in Georgia elementary schools and demonstrated the effective use of a comprehensive, multicomponent program to offer more school-based physical activity opportunities and to improve student fitness.

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School-based physical activity programs for promoting physical activity and fitness in children and adolescents aged 6 to 18

Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews ◽

10.1002/14651858.cd007651.pub2 ◽

2013 ◽

Cited By ~ 167

Author(s):

Maureen Dobbins ◽

Heather Husson ◽

Kara DeCorby ◽

Rebecca L LaRocca

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Children And Adolescents ◽

School Based ◽

Physical Activity Programs

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School-based physical activity programs for promoting physical activity and fitness in children and adolescents aged 6 to 18

International Journal of Nursing Practice ◽

10.1111/ijn.12542 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 24 (1) ◽

pp. e12542

Author(s):

Anne Wareing

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Children And Adolescents ◽

School Based ◽

Physical Activity Programs

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KIDS OUT! Protocol of a brief school-based intervention to promote physical activity and to reduce screen time in a sub-cohort of Finnish eighth graders

BMC Public Health ◽

10.1186/s12889-015-2007-8 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 15 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Anne-Mari Jussila ◽

Tommi Vasankari ◽

Olavi Paronen ◽

Harri Sievänen ◽

Kari Tokola ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Screen Time ◽

Eighth Graders ◽

School Based Intervention ◽

School Based

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Changes in Sedentary and Active Lifestyle, Diet Quality and Body Composition Nine Months after an Education Program in Polish Students Aged 11–12 Years: Report from the ABC of Healthy Eating Study

Nutrients ◽

10.3390/nu11020331 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (2) ◽

pp. 331 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Lidia Wadolowska ◽

Jadwiga Hamulka ◽

Joanna Kowalkowska ◽

Natalia Ulewicz ◽

Monika Hoffmann ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Body Composition ◽

Diet Quality ◽

Screen Time ◽

Knowledge Score ◽

Nutrition Knowledge ◽

Mean Difference ◽

Central Adiposity ◽

Active Lifestyle ◽

School Based

The sustainability of education focused on improving the dietary and lifestyle behaviours of teenagers has not been extensively studied. The aim of this study was to determine the sustainability of diet-related and lifestyle-related school-based education on sedentary and active lifestyle, diet quality and body composition of Polish pre-teenagers in a medium-term follow-up study. An education-based intervention study was carried out on 464 students aged 11–12 years (educated/control group: 319/145). Anthropometric measurements were taken and body mass index (BMI) and waist-to-height ratios (WHtR) were calculated, both at the baseline and after nine months. Dietary data from a short-form food frequency questionnaire (SF-FFQ4PolishChildren) were collected. Two measures of lifestyle (screen time, physical activity) and two diet quality scores (pro-healthy, pHDI, and non-healthy, nHDI) were established. After nine months, in the educated group (vs. control) a significantly higher increase was found in nutrition knowledge score (mean difference of the change: 1.8 points) with a significantly higher decrease in physical activity (mean difference of the change: −0.20 points), nHDI (−2.3% points), the z-WHtR (−0.18 SD), and the z-waist circumference (−0.13 SD). Logistic regression modelling with an adjustment for confounders revealed that after nine months in the educated group (referent: control), the chance of adherence to a nutrition knowledge score of at least the median was over 2 times higher, and that of the nHDI category of at least the median was significantly lower (by 35%). In conclusion, diet-related and lifestyle-related school-based education from an almost one-year perspective can reduce central adiposity in pre-teenagers, despite a decrease in physical activity and the tendency to increase screen time. Central adiposity reduction can be attributed to the improvement of nutrition knowledge in pre-teenagers subjected to the provided education and to stopping the increase in unhealthy dietary habits.

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