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Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2019 May 14;16(10):1674.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph16101674.

Evaluation of the Computer-Based Intervention Program Stayingfit Brazil to Promote Healthy Eating Habits: The Results from a School Cluster-Randomized Controlled Trial

Karine Brito Beck da Silva  1 , Naiá Ortelan  2 , Sheila Giardini Murta  3 , Isabel Sartori  4 , Ricardo David Couto  5 , Rosemeire Leovigildo Fiaccone  6   7   8 , Maurício Lima Barreto  9   10 , Megan Jones Bell  11   12 , Craig Barr Taylor  13 , Rita de Cássia Ribeiro-Silva  14
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Evaluation of the Computer-Based Intervention Program Stayingfit Brazil to Promote Healthy Eating Habits: The Results from a School Cluster-Randomized Controlled Trial

Karine Brito Beck da Silva et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Interventions via the Internet are promising regarding the promotion of healthy habits among youth. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of an adapted version of StayingFit to promote healthy eating habits and the measurement adequacy of anthropometric markers among adolescents. A web school-based 12-month cluster-randomized controlled trial examining 7th to 9th grade students was conducted in twelve schools in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. The schools' students were randomly distributed into the intervention and control groups. The intervention group participated in StayingFit, an online program designed to encourage and guide healthy eating habits and control body weight. Data on food consumption, anthropometry, physical activity level, and sedentary behavior were collected from all of the students at the beginning of and after the 12-month study. Demographic and socioeconomic data were collected at baseline. The baseline data indicated high rates of overweight (14.4% overweight and 8.5% obese), insufficiently active (87.6%), and sedentary (63.7%). Furthermore, few adolescents regularly consumed fruits (18.8%) and vegetables/legumes (16.4%). Generalized estimating equations (GEEs) were used to evaluate the effect of the intervention. At the end of the follow-up period, students in the intervention group had a 43% increased chance of regularly consuming beans (OR = 1.43, 95% CIs = 1.10-1.86) and a 35% decreased chance of regularly consuming soft drinks (OR = 0.65, 95% CIs = 0.50-0.84). No differences were found between the groups studied with regard to the anthropometric parameters. Despite these modest results, the implementation of a web intervention can be beneficial and help promote positive changes in adolescent eating habits.

Keywords: adolescents; school-based nutrition intervention; web-based platform.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flowchart of adolescent recruitment and participation in the study.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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