TY - JOUR

T1 - Reducing young schoolchildren’s intake of sugar-rich food and drinks

T2 - Study protocol and intervention design for “are you too sweet?” a multicomponent 3.5-month cluster randomised family-based intervention study

AU - Bestle, Sidse Marie Sidenius

AU - Christensen, Bodil Just

AU - Trolle, Ellen

AU - Biltoft-Jensen, Anja Pia

AU - Matthiessen, Jeppe

AU - Gibbons, Sarah Jegsmark

AU - Ersbøll, Bjarne Kjær

AU - Lassen, Anne Dahl

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.

PY - 2020

Y1 - 2020

N2 - A high consumption of sugar-rich discretionary food and drinks has several health implications, which have been traced from childhood into adulthood. Parents act as primary mediators shaping children’s dietary habits, and interventions that engage parents have shown to result in positive outcomes. Further, collaboration with local school health nurses and dentists provides an effective structural frame to support behaviour change and anchor new initiatives. The multicomponent 3.5-month cluster randomised family-focused intervention “Are you too Sweet?” aims to evaluate the effectiveness of communicating new Danish guidelines for sugar-rich discretionary food and drinks for school starters (5–7 years). This paper describes the development, outcomes and process evaluation of the intervention that includes three main components: extended dialogue during a school health nurse consultation, a box with home-use materials, and a social media platform to facilitate interaction among participants. Children (n = 160) and their parents were scheduled for a baseline interview at six different schools. The intervention was developed to increase self-efficacy, knowledge about guidelines, observational learning and reduce impediments for behavioural change. The desired primary outcome was a reduction in intake of sugar-rich food measured through a 7-day dietary record. The results contribute to the evidence on effective health promotion strategies.

AB - A high consumption of sugar-rich discretionary food and drinks has several health implications, which have been traced from childhood into adulthood. Parents act as primary mediators shaping children’s dietary habits, and interventions that engage parents have shown to result in positive outcomes. Further, collaboration with local school health nurses and dentists provides an effective structural frame to support behaviour change and anchor new initiatives. The multicomponent 3.5-month cluster randomised family-focused intervention “Are you too Sweet?” aims to evaluate the effectiveness of communicating new Danish guidelines for sugar-rich discretionary food and drinks for school starters (5–7 years). This paper describes the development, outcomes and process evaluation of the intervention that includes three main components: extended dialogue during a school health nurse consultation, a box with home-use materials, and a social media platform to facilitate interaction among participants. Children (n = 160) and their parents were scheduled for a baseline interview at six different schools. The intervention was developed to increase self-efficacy, knowledge about guidelines, observational learning and reduce impediments for behavioural change. The desired primary outcome was a reduction in intake of sugar-rich food measured through a 7-day dietary record. The results contribute to the evidence on effective health promotion strategies.

KW - Dietary guidelines

KW - Discretionary food

KW - Family-based intervention

KW - Social cognitive theory

KW - SSBs

KW - Sugar-rich food

U2 - 10.3390/ijerph17249580

DO - 10.3390/ijerph17249580

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 33561071

AN - SCOPUS:85098322139

VL - 17

SP - 1

EP - 20

JO - International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

JF - International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

SN - 1661-7827

IS - 24

M1 - 9580

ER -