There was some evidence that school-based physical activity interventions had a positive impact on four of the nine outcome measures .
Specifically positive effects were observed for duration of physical activity , television viewing , VO2 max , and blood cholesterol .
Generally , school-based interventions had little effect on physical activity rates , systolic and diastolic blood pressure , BMI , and pulse rate .
At a minimum , a combination of printed educational material s and changes to the school curriculum that promote physical activity result ed in positive effects .
Few changes in outcomes were observed in this up date with the exception of blood cholesterol and physical activity rates .
For example blood cholesterol was no longer positively impacted upon by school-based physical activity interventions .
The evidence suggests the ongoing implementation of school-based physical activity interventions at this time , given the positive effects on behavior and one physical health status measure .
BACKGROUND The World Health Organization ( WHO ) estimates that 1.9 million deaths worldwide are attributable to physical inactivity and at least 2.6 million deaths are a result of being overweight or obese .
In addition , WHO estimates that physical inactivity causes 10 % to 16 % of cases each of breast cancer , colon , and rectal cancers as well as type 2 diabetes , and 22 % of coronary heart disease and the burden of these and other chronic diseases has rapidly increased in recent decades .
OBJECTIVES The purpose of this systematic review was to summarize the evidence of the effectiveness of school-based interventions in promoting physical activity and fitness in children and adolescents .
The effects of a 3-year obesity intervention in schoolchildren in Beijing.
BACKGROUND Childhood obesity has become a health problem in urban areas in China . Intervention to reduce childhood obesity should be of high priority . School-based intervention programmes are needed to deal with the growing prevalence of childhood obesity in China . METHODS Five primary schools were selected r and omly for this study in the Beijing urban area in China ; two were allocated to the intervention group and three to the control group . A total of 2425 children ( 1029 children in intervention schools and 1396 children in control schools ) took part in the study for 3 years . In the intervention group , children and their parents were involved in a programme of nutrition education and physical activity . Control school students followed their usual health and physical education curriculum with no extra intervention . RESULTS After the 3-year intervention , the prevalence of overweight and obesity were significantly lower in the intervention schools than in the control schools ( overweight : 9.8 % vs. 14.4 % , P < 0.01 ; obesity : 7.9 % vs. 13.3 % , P < 0.01 ) . The prevalence of overweight and obesity decreased by 26.3 % and 32.5 % in intervention schools respectively after intervention . The prevalence of overweight and obesity increased in control schools . There was also significant difference in body mass index between intervention and control schools ( 18.2 + /- 2.6 vs. 20.3 + /- 3.4 , P < 0.01 ) after intervention . More non-obese children became obese in the control schools ( 7.0 % ) than in the intervention schools ( 2.4 % ) at end line ( P < 0.01 ) . Among the children who were obese at baseline , 49.2 % remained obese at end line in intervention schools while 61.9 % remained obese in control schools ( P < 0.01 ) . CONCLUSIONS Our study showed that an intervention programme could be feasible in schools in Beijing , China . The prevalence of overweight and obesity was reduced in schoolchildren in Beijing through an intervention focused on nutrition education and physical activity . Overweight and obesity children as well as normal weight children and their parents should be involved in such an intervention programme
There was some evidence that school-based physical activity interventions had a positive impact on four of the nine outcome measures .
Specifically positive effects were observed for duration of physical activity , television viewing , VO2 max , and blood cholesterol .
Generally , school-based interventions had little effect on physical activity rates , systolic and diastolic blood pressure , BMI , and pulse rate .
At a minimum , a combination of printed educational material s and changes to the school curriculum that promote physical activity result ed in positive effects .
Few changes in outcomes were observed in this up date with the exception of blood cholesterol and physical activity rates .
For example blood cholesterol was no longer positively impacted upon by school-based physical activity interventions .
The evidence suggests the ongoing implementation of school-based physical activity interventions at this time , given the positive effects on behavior and one physical health status measure .
BACKGROUND The World Health Organization ( WHO ) estimates that 1.9 million deaths worldwide are attributable to physical inactivity and at least 2.6 million deaths are a result of being overweight or obese .
In addition , WHO estimates that physical inactivity causes 10 % to 16 % of cases each of breast cancer , colon , and rectal cancers as well as type 2 diabetes , and 22 % of coronary heart disease and the burden of these and other chronic diseases has rapidly increased in recent decades .
OBJECTIVES The purpose of this systematic review was to summarize the evidence of the effectiveness of school-based interventions in promoting physical activity and fitness in children and adolescents .