Childcare Outdoor Learning Environments as Active Food Systems (COLEAFS)

North Carolina State University

Status: Completed

Conditions: Pediatric Obesity; Sedentary Behavior

Treatments: Other: Garden installation

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT04864574

2017-68001-26354 NIFA

Details and patient eligibility

About

The aim of this project is to assess the effectiveness of the fruit and vegetable (FV) gardening component of the Preventing Obesity by Design strategy to support preschool fresh fruit and vegetable knowledge, liking and consumption, and physical activity in children 3-5 years old living in under-resourced communities and attending childcare using a Randomized Controlled Trial research design. Sample: 15 childcare centers, 286 children.

Full description

Objective: To assess the effectiveness of a gardening component on preschool children's knowledge, liking and consumption of fruit and vegetable consumption, and their level of physical activity during gardening season.

Intervention: Fruit and vegetable garden installation. Childcare centers were randomly assigned to one of three groups: Group 1, intervention (5 centers); Group 2, wait list control (5 centers); Group 3, no-intervention control (5 centers).

In Year 1 (Spring), baseline data was collected from Groups 1 and Group 2 (waitlist). Group 1, initial intervention centers, received the garden intervention in the Summer and both groups were assessed in the Fall, post intervention. No further data was collected from Group 1.

In Year 2 (Spring), Group 2 (waitlist, now intervention) and Group 3 were assessed. Group 2, received the garden intervention in the Summer of Year 2 and both groups were assessed in the Fall of Year 2.

No further data was collected.

Sample: 15 centers. Children: 286 (4 and 5 years old). Center demographic profile includes child data: age, gender, parental education, race/ethnicity, special needs, and height/weight (BMI). To avoid losing "graduating" five year old children, post-intervention data was gathered before school start date.

Enrollment: 286 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 42 months to 6 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Children enrolled in selected childcare centers
• Parental consent
• Child consent to participate at the time of data collection

Exclusion criteria

• No parental consent

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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286 participants in 3 patient groups

Group 1 - Intervention

Experimental group

Description:

Participating children have daily access to the fruit and vegetable garden beginning Year 1.

Treatment:

Other: Garden installation

Group 2 - Wait-list control (delayed intervention)

Experimental group

Description:

Participating children have daily access to the fruit and vegetable garden beginning Year 2.

Treatment:

Other: Garden installation

Group 3 - Control

No Intervention group

Description:

No intervention