Abstract
ABSTRACTOBJECTIVETo evaluate the implementation and effectiveness of school-based interventions to prevent obesity conducted in Latin America and provide suggestions for future prevention efforts in countries of the region.METHODSArticles published in English, Spanish, and Portuguese between 2000 and 2017 were searched in four online databases (Google Scholar, PubMed, LILACS, and REDALYC). Inclusion criteria were: studies targeting school-aged children and adolescents (6–18 years old), focusing on preventing obesity in a Latin American country using at least one school-based component, reporting at least one obesity-related outcome, comprising controlled or before-and-after design, and including information on intervention components and/or process.RESULTSSixteen studies met the inclusion criteria. Most effective interventions (n = 3) had moderate quality and included multi-component school-based programs to promote health education and parental involvement focused on healthy eating and physical activity behaviors. These studies also presented a better study designs, few limitations for execution, and a minimum duration of six months.CONCLUSIONSEvidence-based prevention experiences are important guides for future strategies implemented in the region. Alongside gender differences, an adequate duration, and the combined use of quantitative and qualitative evaluation methods, evidence-based prevention should be considered to provide a clearer and deeper understanding of the true effects of school-based interventions.
Highlights
Childhood obesity is a global public health problem
Evidence-based prevention experiences are important guides for future strategies implemented in the region
Search strategy included Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) terms combined with text words based on the categories: population, intervention, outcomes, and type of studies addressed by the review
Summary
The worldwide trend showed that, in 2013, 22.6% of girls and 23.8% of boys in developed countries were overweight or obese, whereas in developing countries it was 13% for both girls and boys[1]. A study on the trends from 1975 to 2016 estimated the global-age standardized prevalence of obesity in children and adolescents to be 5.6% among girls and 7.8% among boys, highlighting the sustained growth in developing countries[2]. Country-specific data from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2015 Obesity Collaborators shows that in Chile the prevalence was 25.5% among girls and 36.4% among boys, and in Brazil 23.8% among girls and 27.3% boys (< 20 years old)[4]. As for Peru, GBD found 22.4% of girls and 19.2% of boys to be overweight or obese
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