The effects of a weight loss program focusing on maternal education on childhood obesity

Childhood obesity is a matter of great concern because of its negative health and social consequences. We examined the effect of a weight control program focusing on maternal education on childhood obesity, given that the incidence of obesity is greatly affected by parents.

A two-group pre-test/post-test design was used. Participants consisted of 65 obese children and their mothers. The children were fourth- to sixth-grade elementary students who did not currently receive any therapy for weight loss. The children and their mothers were randomly assigned to either an experimental (n = 32) or a control group (n = 33). The 8-week intervention for mothers included one-time group education, three-time phone counseling, and four-time fliers regarding obesity management. Four outcomes (self-control, obesity index, abdominal circumference, and body fat percentage) were measured before and after the intervention. Chi-squared test or t test was used to test homogeneity between the two groups. Analysis of covariance was used to test the intervention effects.

After the intervention was completed, the level of self-control was significantly heightened and obesity levels in the other three outcomes were greatly lowered in the experimental group when compared with the control group.

Due to strong maternal effects on children's weight control, mothers' active participation must be encouraged in order to resolve childhood obesity.