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Development, implementation and early results of a 12-week web-based intervention targeting 51 children age 5-13
Annelie Thorén1,2, Annika Janson3,4, Erling Englund5
1Department of Clinical Sciences, Pediatrics Umeå University Umeå Sweden.
Insights
An internet-based program, Web-Childhood Obesity Prevention (Web-COP), combined with standard care, proved feasible for treating childhood obesity. This approach helped two-thirds of participating children reduce their Body Mass Index (BMI).
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Public Health
- Digital Health
Background:
- Internet-based interventions show promise for various health conditions.
- Scaling up interventions for childhood obesity is crucial, especially in rural areas.
- A need exists for accessible, supplementary treatments for pediatric obesity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To design and implement an internet-based program as an adjunct to standard childhood obesity treatment.
- To evaluate the feasibility of integrating digital health tools into pediatric obesity care.
- To assess the impact of a combined intervention on Body Mass Index Standard Deviation Score (BMI-SDS).
Main Methods:
- A prospective feasibility study with a pre-post design (Web-COP).
- Intervention included clinic-based group sessions, physical activity prescriptions, and a 12-week internet program.
- Targeted children aged 5-13 with obesity (IOTF-BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2) in Northern Sweden.
Main Results:
- The internet-based component achieved a high retention rate (92.7%).
- Mean BMI-SDS decreased over six months post-intervention.
- Significant proportions of children (81%) lowered their BMI-SDS and (65%) their BMI.
Conclusions:
- Combining group sessions and an internet-based program with standard care is feasible for childhood obesity.
- The Web-COP intervention demonstrated positive outcomes in reducing BMI in children.
- This digitally enhanced approach offers a scalable solution for pediatric obesity management.
Background:
Internet-based treatments have proven effective for various health issues. There is a need to scale up interventions targeting children with obesity, also in less densely populated areas where the prevalence in many countries is higher than in urban areas. The aim of this study was to design and implement an internet-based program as an add-on to standard treatment for childhood obesity.
Methods:
Web-Childhood Obesity Prevention (Web-COP) was a prospective feasibility study with a pre- post- design. The intervention consisted of four group-based education sessions at the clinic, physical activity on prescription, and a new 12-week internet-based program. Web-COP was offered to children with obesity (International Obesity Task Force Body Mass Index (IOTF-BMI) ≥ 30 kg/m2) and their parents in two counties in Northern Sweden from August 2018 to June 2019. The primary outcome was change in BMI standard deviation score (BMI-SDS).
Results:
The study included 55 children 5-13 years of age. The internet-based component was well received, and retention rate was 51/55 (92.7%). Data was analysed for 51 children. Mean BMI-SDS was 3.3 at start and decreased by 0.2, 0.3, and 0.4 at two, four, and six months from baseline. Using a continuous algorithm, 42/51 (81%), children lowered their BMI-SDS and 33/51 (65%) lowered their BMI.
Conclusion:
Adding group sessions and an internet-based program to standard care was feasible and two thirds of included children with obesity reduced their BMI.
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