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Primary prevention programs for childhood obesity: are they cost-effective?

Miriana Guarino1, Lorena Matonti2, Francesco Chiarelli2

  • 1University of Study G. d'Annunzio, Chieti-Pescara, Italy. mirianag_@hotmail.it.

Italian Journal of Pediatrics
|March 2, 2023
PubMed

Insights

Primary prevention programs for childhood obesity are often cost-effective, showing positive economic outcomes. More consistent study designs are needed to confirm these findings for public health initiatives.

Area of Science:

  • Public Health
  • Health Economics
  • Pediatrics

Background:

  • Childhood obesity presents a growing global challenge, impacting quality of life and incurring significant societal costs.
  • Effective primary prevention strategies are crucial for mitigating the long-term health and economic consequences of pediatric overweight and obesity.

Approach:

  • This systematic review evaluated the cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) of primary prevention programs targeting childhood overweight/obesity.
  • Studies were identified through comprehensive searches of PubMed and Google Scholar, with quality assessed using Drummond's checklist.

Key Points:

  • Ten studies met the inclusion criteria, encompassing community-based, school-based, or combined prevention programs.
  • Seventy percent of the reviewed studies reported positive economic results, indicating the cost-effectiveness of implemented interventions.
  • Significant heterogeneity was observed in study designs, target populations, and outcome measures.

Conclusions:

  • The majority of primary prevention programs for childhood obesity demonstrate favorable economic outcomes.
  • Enhancing study homogeneity and consistency is essential for robustly validating the cost-effectiveness of these interventions.

Keywords:
Adolescence overweight and obesityChildhood overweight and obesityCost-effectivenessPrimary prevention

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