Effects of a 12-week, school-based obesity management program on obese primary school children

Purpose: This study was designed to determine the effects of a school-based obesity-management program on obese primary school children. Methods: A total of 995 children (6-12 years old) in a primary school were screened in March 2008, and of those, 101 obese students (44 boys and 57 girls, body mass index (BMI) ≥95 percentile) were enrolled for a study group. The schoolbased, obesity management program, which includes physical exercise and nutritional education, was conducted as part of an extracurricular program for 12 weeks. The measurement of height, weight, waist circumference, blood pressure (BP), and bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) was performed before and after the program. Results: Height and weight increased significantly (P <0.05). The BMI and obesity index decreased significantly (P <0.01). Systolic and diastolic BP decreased significantly (P <0.01). BMI decreased in 61.4% of boys and 66.7% of girls. Protein and basal metabolic rate (BMR) increased significantly on the BIA (P <0.01). Fat decreased significantly (P <0.05). The total body water (TBW) and percent body fat (PBF) decreased significantly (P <0.01). The changes in protein, fat, TBW, PBF, and BMR significantly correlated to the change in BMI (P <0.05). In a multiple logistic regression analysis, BMI change was significantly correlated to the changes in protein and fat content (P <0.01). Conclusion: The school-based obesity management program is a very effective way to manage obesity for obese primary school children.