Teaching children about healthy eating and discouraging the consumption of sodas (fizzy drinks) has a short to medium term effect on childhood obesity, but no long term impact. Researchers found that three years after an education program came to an end the impact was completely gone.

You can read about this in the British Medical Journal (BMJ).

The authors explain that simple interventions are only really effective if there are ongoing and long-term. Approximately 10% of the global school age population is overweight. Forecasts predict that 20% of boys and 25% of girls in the United Kingdom will be obese by 2010.

Janet James and team explain that several studies have demonstrated that there is a link between the consumption of fizzy drinks and obesity – this association is acknowledged by the WHO (World Health Organization).

The “Ditch the Fizz” campaign, known as the Christchurch Obesity Prevention Project, was put into practice in six junior schools in Southern England from August 2001 – the program ran for one year and included 644 children, aged 7-11. The program attempted to discourage children from consuming fizzy drinks, as well as encouraging them to eat healthily – there were four extra health education classes spread over the year. There was one intervention group and a control group. At the end of the year the levels of obesity in the intervention group was significantly lower than in the control group.

24 months after the project had ended researchers re-measured the children’s weight, height and BMI (body mass index) – and converted them into Z scores. The Z score factors in the child’s age and sex, and represents the deviation compared to an average child of the same age and gender.

The researchers found that the total number of overweight children had risen in both groups – however, there were still more overweight children in the control group. Three years after the project had finished the prevalence of overweight in both groups was identical.

The authors explain that obesity is a very complex condition.

“It remains unclear whether specific interventions or those which focus on all aspects of the diet and physical activity are the most successful. Perhaps the true impact of any school based intervention can effectively only be evaluated if the interventions are continuous,” the researchers concluded.

“Preventing childhood obesity: two year follow-up results from the Christchurch obesity prevention programme in schools (CHOPPS)”
Janet James, Peter Thomas, David Kerr
BMJ, doi:10.1136/bmj.39342.571806.55 (published 8 October 2007)
Click here to view abstract online