Reducing Health Disparities in Childhood Obesity

University of South Carolina

Status: Completed

Conditions: Obesity

Treatments: Behavioral: Free Summer Programming

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT04072549

Pro00086238

Details and patient eligibility

About

In this study, we will address cost barriers to participating in summer programs and hypothesize this will lead to marked improvements in children's obesogenic behaviors and a reduction in excessive, unhealthy weight gain over summer.

Full description

For this study, we will rigorously test the impact of providing access to existing community-operated summer programs on weight status (i.e., BMI z-score) and obesogenic behaviors of 1st-3rd grade children from low-income households. Using a pragmatic, Type II hybrid effectiveness-implementation randomized design, we will compare changes in weight status and obesogenic behaviors of children from low-income households randomized to one of two conditions: free summer programming or comparison/control.

Enrollment: 651 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 6 to 10 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

1st through 3rd grade students in the participating schools.

Exclusion criteria

The only exclusion criteria will be the diagnosis of an intellectual disability, such as:

Autism Spectrum Disorder Down Syndrome Fragile X Fetal Alcohol and/or a physical disability, such as wheelchair use

This decision was made because of the added resources required to evaluate these children, as well as the inability to sample enough of these children to adequately draw conclusions.

No other exclusion criteria will be used.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Double Blind

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651 participants in 2 patient groups

Summer Programming

Experimental group

Description:

The summer day camps are not singularly focused, such as sport camps or academic only camps. Rather, the camps provide indoor and outdoor opportunities for children to be physically active each day, provide enrichment and academic programming, as well as provide breakfast, lunch, and snacks. To standardize programming, the schools operate their camps on the same daily schedules which are developed by the same district-level personnel, with identical programmatic content delivered across all schools. The schools also provide the same meals to all children enrolled. The meals adhere to the Summer Food Service Program nutrition guidelines and are reimbursed through existing federal food programs.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Free Summer Programming

Comparison/Control

No Intervention group

Description:

The children in the control group will be children enrolled in the same schools as those randomized to receive summer programming. The comparison/control group will not receive a voucher to attend a summer camp.