BEHAVIORAL WEIGHT LOSS PROGRAM
FOR CHILDREN AND THEIR PARENTS
OVERVIEW
A weight reduction program for overweight children and their parents was developed. The program could be supplemented and integrated with parent training sessions on child management skills. In a random assignment study with a wait-list control group, families were assigned to one of three groups: a control group that received no intervention, a treatment group that received only the weight reduction intervention, and a treatment group that received the weight reduction intervention and the parent training sessions. At the end of the nine-week intervention period, children assigned to the two treatment groups had lost significantly more weight than had children in the control group. During the year-long follow-up period, children whose parents received the parent training sessions were more likely to maintain their improved weight status than were children whose parents did not receive this training.
DESCRIPTION OF PROGRAM
Target population: overweight children and their parents
A weight reduction program for overweight children and their parents was developed. This program consisted of nine weekly sessions, each 90 minutes in length. Children and their parents attended the program together, though parents took part in activities separate from their children during each session. Sessions were led in a lecture-discussion format, so as to provide for individualized programming as well as an exchange of information and experiences. Program participants were encouraged to monitor food and caloric intake, energy expenditure, and adherence to recommended changes in weight-related habits. Responsibility for monitoring was divided between parents and children in such a way as to encourage children’s active participation while giving parents ultimate responsibility for record keeping.
The weight reduction program could be supplemented with a parent training program. This program consisted of two hour-long sessions on child management skills to be administered prior to the commencement of the weight reduction program. Session content was based upon Gerald R. Patterson’s book Living With Children. Lessons learned during this two-hour supplement could be integrated into the weight reduction program’s parent sessions. Families in the parent training treatment group received this module in addition to the weight reduction program.
EVALUATION(S) OF PROGRAM
Evaluated population: 33 overweight children and their parents served as the study sample for this investigation. Children were between the ages of 8 and 12.
Approach: Families were assigned to one of three groups: a weight reduction only treatment group, a weight reduction plus parent training treatment group, and a wait-list control group. Children assigned to the control group did not take part in a weight loss intervention. Children in both treatment groups took part in the weight reduction program, as did their parents. Parents of children assigned to the weight reduction plus parent training treatment group took part in two hour-long sessions on child management skills before the commencement of the weight reduction program. Parent sessions were led by an advanced graduate student in clinical psychology. Two other graduate students assisted in leading the sessions and with making between-session phone calls to assist parents with homework assignments, provide motivational input, and further individualize treatment procedures. Child sessions were led by two undergraduate students who were trained and supervised by the parent session leader.
All children and their parents were weighed and surveyed at the beginning and end of the nine week intervention. Following the conclusion of the intervention period, all treatment children and their parents came in for weigh-ins and problem-solving discussions at 1, 2, 4, 6, 9, and 12 months. During the follow-up period, families assigned to the wait-list control group were given the opportunity to take part in the weight reduction program.
Results: At the end of the nine-week intervention period, children in the treatment groups had lost significantly more weight than had children in the control group. The amount of weight lost by children in the weight reduction plus parent training group did not differ significantly from the amount of weight lost by children in the weight reduction only group. However, on average, children in the weight reduction only group were less overweight than children in the weight reduction plus parent training group (as measured by percent overweight) at the end of the intervention period.
Among parents who were overweight at the commencement of the intervention, parents in the treatment groups lost more weight than parents in the control group during the intervention period as well. There was no significant difference in amount of weight lost between parents in the weight reduction plus parent training group and parents in the weight reduction only group.
As measured by parental responses to the Eating Habit Checklist, treatment children improved their eating habits to a greater extent than did control children over the course of the intervention period. Eating habits among children in the weight reduction plus parent training group did not differ significantly from eating habits among children in the weight reduction only group. As measured by parental responses to the Knowledge of Behavioral Principles Applied to Children Scale, parents in the weight reduction plus parent training group had significantly greater knowledge of child management than did parents in the weight reduction only group and the control group at the end of the intervention period.
There is no control group for the follow-up analyses, as wait-list controls were offered in the treatment. During the one-year follow-up period, children in the weight reduction only condition were significantly less likely than children in the weight reduction plus parent training condition to decrease their percent overweight. 8 of 11 children from the weight reduction plus parent training condition maintained or decreased their percent overweight during the year following the intervention, whereas only 2 of 9 weight reduction only children did so. Additionally, 4 of 11 children from the weight reduction plus parent training condition achieved non-obese status during the year following the intervention, but only 1 of 9 weight reduction only children did so. As measured by parental responses to the Eating Habit Checklist, children in the weight reduction plus parent training group had similar eating habits to children in the weight reduction only group during the follow-up period.
This study is undermined by a small sample and high attrition.
SOURCES FOR MORE INFORMATION
Curriculum materials unavailable for purchase.
Living With Children available for purchase at:
References:
Patterson, G. R. (1976). Living
With Children: New Methods for Parents and Teachers.
Program categorized in this guide according to the following:
Evaluated participant ages: 8-12
Program age ranges in the guide: Middle Childhood, Adolescence
Program components: Parent/Family Component
Measured outcomes: Physical Health
KEYWORDS: Middle Childhood (6-11), Adolescence (12-17), Children (3-11), Elementary School, Home-based, Counseling/Therapy, Life Skills Training, Physical Health, Nutrition, Overweight, Obese, co-ed
Program information last updated on 10/26/07.
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© Child Trends 2003 |
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