An integrative review of obesity prevention in African American children

Abstract

The obesity epidemic disproportionately affects African American children ages 2 to 18 years of age. The author performed an integrative review of the literature pertaining to African American childhood obesity prevention. The 28 research articles that met the inclusion criteria for this integrative review were primarily comprised of descriptive studies, targeted primarily middle-school children and only six were intervention studies. Most intervention studies were pilot studies, had insufficient power related to small sample size, and had short-term interventions and no follow-up. These studies are promising as they test innovative and cultural specific interventions targeting children's lifestyle behaviors aimed at reducing obesity among African Americans.