Abstract
BackgroundRacial minority children, particularly from low-income households, are at risk for obesity. Family meals have a protective effect on child nutritional health. However, the current evidence is limited in racial and socioeconomic diversity. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of a family meals intervention, Simple Suppers, on improvements in diet and health outcomes from baseline (T0) to post-intervention (T1) in intervention compared to waitlist control participants, and determine retention of change in outcomes among intervention participants at 10-week follow-up (T2).MethodsSimple Suppers was a 10-week family meals intervention implemented as a 2-group quasi-experimental trial. Ten 90-min lessons were delivered weekly. Data were collected at T0 and T1, and from intervention participants at T2. Participants were racially diverse 4–10 year-old children from low-income households. Setting was a faith-based community center. Main outcomes were daily servings of fruit, vegetables, and sugar-sweetened beverages and diet quality; z-scores for body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, systolic and diastolic blood pressure (BP); weight status categories; food preparation skills; and family meals (frequency of dinner, breakfast, TV viewing during meals, meals in dining area). Generalized linear mixed models (GLMMs) and mixed-effects ordinal regression models were used to assess intervention impact (T0:T1). Paired t-tests examined retention of change among intervention participants (T1:T2).ResultsOne hundred forty children enrolled and 126 completed T1 (90% retention); 71 of 87 intervention participants completed T2(79% retention). Mean (SD) age was 6.9(1.9) yr, 62% female, 60% Black, and 42% low-income. Intervention vs waitlist controls had higher food preparation skills (p < 0.001) and lower TV viewing during meals (p = 0.04) at T1.There were no group differences in dietary intake or quality or z-scores for BMI, waist circumference, or BP, however intervention versus waitlist controls experienced a greater change toward healthy weight (p = 0.04) At T2, intervention participants demonstrated a retention of improved food preparation skills.ConclusionsSimple Suppers led to improvements in children’s weight status, food preparation skills, and TV viewing during meals, but not diet or z-scores for BMI, waist circumference, or BP. Future research should examine the preventive effects of healthy family mealtime routines in children at greatest risk for obesity.Trial registrationNCT02923050; Simple Suppers Scale-up (S3); Retrospectively registered on Oct 2016; First participant enrolled on Jan 2015.
Highlights
Racial minority children, from low-income households, are at risk for obesity
The hypothesis was that: 1) Diet (daily servings of fruit, vegetables, and sugar-sweetened beverages and Healthy Eating Index (HEI) score); z-scores for body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, blood pressure (BP); weight status (healthy weight (5th to
Intervention versus waitlist control children demonstrated significantly higher food preparation skills (p < 0.001; CI: 2.88, 6.58) and lower TV viewing during family meals (p = 0.04; CI: − 2.06, − 0.02) at post-intervention (T1) (Table 2)
Summary
From low-income households, are at risk for obesity. There is need for additional research on family meals, experimental studies with expanded health outcomes that focus on the at-risk populations in the greatest need of intervention (i.e., those with the highest rates of obesity) [32]. This body of research would benefit from an expansion of the target age range to include younger children (4–7 year-old), who are laying the foundation of their eating patterns [33], capable of participating in family meal preparations [34], and may reap benefits of family meals [35]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
