Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2020 Nov-Dec;34(6):575-583.
doi: 10.1016/j.pedhc.2020.06.012. Epub 2020 Sep 9.

Adolescents as Agents of Parental Healthy Lifestyle Behavior Change: COPE Healthy Lifestyles TEEN Program

Stephanie Kelly, Bernadette Mazurek Melnyk, Jacqueline Hoying
Randomized Controlled Trial

Adolescents as Agents of Parental Healthy Lifestyle Behavior Change: COPE Healthy Lifestyles TEEN Program

Stephanie Kelly et al. J Pediatr Health Care. 2020 Nov-Dec.

Abstract

Introduction: Obesity is a leading health crisis around the world. An intervention strategy scarcely utilized for behavior change is that of a child as change agent. The purpose of this study was to describe the impact of teens reviewing newsletters from a healthy lifestyle intervention with their parents.

Method: Evaluation data from a randomized controlled trial, COPE Healthy Lifestyle TEEN Program, was analyzed. A descriptive study was conducted of parents' and teens' lifestyle behaviors as reported by parents.

Results: One hundred sixty-nine parents completed evaluations. Two thirds of parents reported changing a behavior as a result of the program. Nearly three quarters of parents reported behavior changes in their teens. Over 90% reported they would recommend this or a similar program.

Discussion: The obesity epidemic shows no signs of reversal, and hence multiple approaches to impact healthy lifestyles are urgent. Including children as a change agent is a potential target for interventions addressing obesity.

Keywords: Healthy lifestyles; adolescent; change agent.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of interest: None to report.

References

    1. Ayi I, Nonaka D, Adjovu JK, Hanafusa S, Jimba M, Bosompem KM, … Kobayashi J (2010). School-based participatory health education for malaria control in Ghana: Engaging children as health messengers. Malaria Journal, 9, 98. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Beck JS, & Beck AT (2011). Cognitive behavior therapy: Basics and beyond (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Guilford Publications.
    1. Bresee S, Caruso BA, Sales J, Lupele J, & Freeman MC (2016). ‘A child is also a teacher’: Exploring the potential for children as change agents in the context of a school-based WASH intervention in rural Eastern Zambia. Health Education Research, 31, 521–534. - PubMed
    1. Burrows L (2017). Children as change agents for family health. Health Education, 117, 498–510.
    1. Crino M, Sacks G, & Wu JHY (2016). A review of population-level actions targeting reductions in food portion sizes to address obesity and related non-communicable diseases. Current Nutrition Reports, 5, 323–332.

Publication types