Policy to Practice: Statewide Rollout of YMCA Childhood Obesity Standards

University of South Carolina

Status: Completed

Conditions: Childhood Obesity

Treatments: Behavioral: Healthy Eating and Physical Activity

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other; NIH

Identifiers

NCT02394717

1R01HD079422-01 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Pro00031161

Details and patient eligibility

About

The investigators long term-goal is to help YMCA programs across the nation successfully acheive the Y of USA "Healthy Eating and Physical Activity Standards". Our objective here is threefold. First, the investigators will work with South Carolina YMCA leadership to achieve the "Healthy Eating and Physical Activity Standards" and implement our HEPA Strategies in YMCA programs across the state, evaluate the uptake of and adherence to the standards and strategies, and identify factors that influence their implementation. Second, the investigators will evaluate the impact of acheiving the standards on children's MVPA and the serving and consumption of FV and water during the programs. Third, the investigators will evaluate the costs associated with and the cost-effectiveness of meeting the standards in terms of improvements in activity and healthy eating.

Full description

The investigators research team developed a conceptual framework that identifies critical modifiable levers within Out of School Time programs that can be altered and/or strengthened to reach policy or standards goals. These include the policy environment at the national, state and local levels; characteristics of the individual site, program leadership, staff, and children; and existing outside organizational partnerships. This framework was informed by complex systems change, social ecology, systemic capacity building , and the literature on the impact of public health policy that identifies key elements of the system to be targeted as well as possible influences on those elements.

Viewing OST programs as complex systems, "Healthy Eating and Physical Activity Standards" represent one of many leverage points within a system. Existing efforts to implement standards rest solely upon the voluntary adoption of the standards, with little to no other changes to the OST program setting. It is clear from our preliminary work and comprehensive reviews that OST programs are falling short of meeting goals set forth in the standards.

Enrollment: 1,000 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 5 to 12 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• All children enrolled in participating afterschool programs will be eligible to take part in the study.

Exclusion criteria

• Any physical/orthopedic impairment that would limit a child's ability to participate in regular physical activity (e.g., wheelchair user).

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: N/A

Interventional model: Single Group Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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1,000 participants in 1 patient group

Intervention

Other group

Description:

All YMCA programs will receive the Healthy Eating and Physical Activity Intervention throughout the study. All programs will receive the HEPA Strategies intervetion to assist them with achievement of the HEPA Standards.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Healthy Eating and Physical Activity