Building knowledge of healthy eating in hospitalized youth: a self-regulated campaign

Data from the World Health Organization shows obesity has more than doubled worldwide since 1980. Childhood obesity is mainly associated with external and modifiable factors, as eating habits, existing room for promoting healthy lifestyles. Additionally, learning can take place in contexts other than schools, as the hospital, potentiating the time of hospitalization. Self-regulated learning framework is suited to train the skills necessary for self-management processes and behavioral changes. The aim was to describe and evaluate a campaign designed to increase knowledge about healthy eating by hospitalized school-aged youth.

A quasi-experimental design was used. Participants were randomly distributed between the experimental and control groups, each one with 15 participants aged between six and 16 years-old. Information about healthy eating was not provided directly; participants had to reflect and work to build knowledge through activities inspired in the self-regulated learning framework.

Results showed that the experimental group when compared with their counterparts significantly improved their knowledge on healthy eating after taking part in the campaign.

Campaigns that increase knowledge on healthy eating based on the promotion of self-regulated learning strategies could be incorporated in health promotion programs not only in pediatric units but also in other educational contexts.