Testing an adapted obesity prevention intervention in under resourced schools: a pilot clustered randomized...

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Childhood Obesity Prevention
• Digital Health Interventions

Background:

• Childhood obesity is a significant public health concern, particularly in under-resourced communities.
• Effective, scalable interventions are needed to address this issue in school settings.

Purpose of the Study:

• To pilot test the adapted Preventing Obesity Using Digital-Assisted Movement and Eating (ProudMe) intervention in under-resourced schools.
• To evaluate implementation outcomes (penetration, fidelity) and identify facilitators and barriers using the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR).

Main Methods:

• Cluster-randomized trial comparing ProudMe to a waitlist control across six under-resourced schools.
• ProudMe components included cafeteria changes (ProudMe Cafeteria), physical education (ProudMe PE), AI-assisted counseling (ProudMe Tech), and staff development (ProudMe PD).
• Mixed methods were used to assess implementation outcomes and facilitators/barriers.

Main Results:

• ProudMe Cafeteria demonstrated highly positive implementation outcomes and improved cafeteria scores.
• ProudMe PE showed moderate penetration and fidelity; ProudMe PD was well-attended, but ProudMe Tech was under-utilized.
• The overall pilot intervention did not yield statistically significant effects on student-level outcomes (p > 0.05).

Conclusions:

• The ProudMe intervention showed mixed implementation results, with notable success in the cafeteria component.
• Facilitators and barriers across CFIR domains influenced implementation and preliminary effectiveness.
• Lessons learned provide valuable insights for refining the ProudMe intervention for future iterations.