Monday, June 28, 2010 #

Do targeted obesity programs work?

Many schools across the country have changed their curriculum to include specialized programs that focus on childhood obesity and how to avoid it.

But a new study has found that programs like these do not seem to be helping with early onset obesity. The study was published in the New England Journal of Medicine and found that the specialized obesity programs had no effect on the weight loss of most of the middle school students who participated.

Forty two schools were monitored over a period of three years. The programs included having healthier lunch programs, more stimulating physical education programs, and education programs about healthy lifestyle choices and nutritious meals.

Study conductors apparently were not expecting the results they saw ("stunned" was the word used in the article), but the results, they said, were fairly similar across the board.

Check out this article to learn more about the study.

What do YOU think? Can targeted obesity programs make a difference in middle school students' habits?
posted @ Monday, June 28, 2010 7:28 PM | Feedback (3)