Children (Apr 2022)

Influence of an Educational Intervention on Eating Habits in School-Aged Children

  • María José Menor-Rodriguez,
  • Jonathan Cortés-Martín,
  • Raquel Rodríguez-Blanque,
  • María Isabel Tovar-Gálvez,
  • María José Aguilar-Cordero,
  • Juan Carlos Sánchez-García

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/children9040574
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 9, no. 4
p. 574

Abstract

Read online

A health promotion intervention directed at preventing unhealthy habits in relation to physical exercise, hygiene habits, diet and personal relationships can lead to a decrease in diseases during adulthood and obtaining a better quality of life. The intervention had a participative and multidisciplinary nature, and it was developed by health professionals, teachers and parents for school children. It promoted healthy lifestyle habits around food by working on four areas through video lessons, interactive talks, practical and theoretical–practical classes and an individual project on behalf of the student where they had to design healthy menus. We randomly selected, by stratified multistage sampling, three public primary education schools. A sample of 479 students registered during the 2014/2015 academic year aged between 6–12 years were included in the study. After the educational intervention, we found a significant reduction in the BMI of the students (p p p p > 0.001). Educational interventions on healthy lifestyle habits carried out in children during their early years improve and correct unhealthy habits.

Keywords