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
. 2023 Oct;182(10):4749-4757.
doi: 10.1007/s00431-023-05126-6. Epub 2023 Aug 15.

Development and evaluation study of FLY-Kids: a new lifestyle screening tool for young children

Anne Krijger  1   2 , Lieke Schiphof-Godart  3 , Liset Elstgeest  2   4 , Caroline van Rossum  5 , Janneke Verkaik-Kloosterman  5 , Elly Steenbergen  5 , Sovianne Ter Borg  5 , Caren Lanting  6 , Karen van Drongelen  7 , Ondine Engelse  8 , Angelika Kindermann  9 , Symone Detmar  6 , Carolien Frenkel  10 , Hein Raat  2 , Koen Joosten  11
Affiliations

Development and evaluation study of FLY-Kids: a new lifestyle screening tool for young children

Anne Krijger et al. Eur J Pediatr. 2023 Oct.

Abstract

Evaluating, discussing, and advising on young children's lifestyles may contribute to timely modification of unhealthy behaviour and prevention of adverse health consequences. We aimed to develop and evaluate a new lifestyle screening tool for children aged 1-3 years. The lifestyle screening tool "FLY-Kids" was developed using data from lifestyle behaviour patterns of Dutch toddlers, age-specific lifestyle recommendations, target group analyses, and a Delphi process. Through 10 items, FLY-Kids generates a dashboard with an overview of the child's lifestyle that can be used as conversation aid. FLY-Kids was completed by parents of children aged 1-3 years attending a regular youth healthcare appointment. Youth healthcare professionals (YHCP) then used the FLY-Kids dashboard to discuss lifestyle with the parents and provided tailored advice. Parents as well as YHCP evaluated the tool after use. Descriptive and correlation statistics were used to determine the usability, feasibility, and preliminary effect of FLY-Kids. Parents (N = 201) scored an average of 3.2 (out of 9, SD 1.6) unfavourable lifestyle behaviours in their children, while 3.0% complied with all recommendations. Most unfavourable behaviours were reported in unhealthy food intake and electronic screen time behaviour. Parents and YHCP regarded FLY-Kids as usable and feasible. The number of items identified by FLY-Kids as requiring attention was associated with the number of items discussed during the appointment (r = 0.47, p < 0.001). Conclusion: FLY-Kids can be used to identify unhealthy lifestyle behaviour in young children and guide the conversation about lifestyle in preventive healthcare settings. End-users rated FLY-Kids as helpful and user-friendly. What is Known: • A healthy lifestyle is important for optimal growth, development and overall health of young children (1-3 years). • Evaluating, discussing and advising on young children's lifestyles may contribute to timely modification of unhealthy behaviour and prevention of adverse health consequences. What is New: • The new lifestyle screening tool FLY-Kids generates a dashboard with an overview of young children's lifestyle that can be used as conversation aid between parents and youth healthcare professionals. • As parents and youth healthcare professionals rated FLY-Kids as helpful and user-friendly, and the number of items identified by FLY-Kids as requiring attention was associated with the number of items discussed during the appointment, FLY-Kids can be considered guiding the lifestyle discussion in preventive healthcare settings.

Keywords: Conversation aid; Lifestyle; Screening; Toddlers.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Overview of the development and evaluation process of FLY-Kids
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
FLY-Kids scores (as compared to national recommendations)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Kovács E, Siani A, Konstabel K, Hadjigeorgiou C, de Bourdeaudhuij I, Eiben G et al (2014) Adherence to the obesity-related lifestyle intervention targets in the IDEFICS study. Int J Obes (Lond) 38(2):144–151 - PMC - PubMed
    1. Rousham EK, Goudet S, Markey O, Griffiths P, Boxer B, Carroll C, et al. Unhealthy food and beverage consumption in children and risk of overweight and obesity: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Adv Nutr. 2022;13(5):1669–1696. doi: 10.1093/advances/nmac032. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Carson V, Lee EY, Hewitt L, Jennings C, Hunter S, Kuzik N, et al. Systematic review of the relationships between physical activity and health indicators in the early years (0–4 years) BMC Public Health. 2017;17(Suppl 5):854. doi: 10.1186/s12889-017-4860-0. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Poitras VJ, Gray CE, Janssen X, Aubert S, Carson V, Faulkner G, et al. Systematic review of the relationships between sedentary behaviour and health indicators in the early years (0–4 years) BMC Public Health. 2017;17(Suppl 5):868. doi: 10.1186/s12889-017-4849-8. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Chaput JP, Gray CE, Poitras VJ, Carson V, Gruber R, Birken CS, et al. Systematic review of the relationships between sleep duration and health indicators in the early years (0–4 years) BMC Public Health. 2017;17(Suppl 5):855. doi: 10.1186/s12889-017-4850-2. - DOI - PMC - PubMed