Interventions for healthy eating and physical activity among obese elementary schoolchildren : observing changes of the combined effects of behavioral models

The aim of this experimental research was to examine the effectiveness of the SSII-Healthy Eating Intervention and Physical Activity intervention programs at the end of intervention implementation in term of combined effects. The sample of this study was 21 students in Sawadeewittaya School, aged 9-11 years, who met the inclusion criteria and consented to participate in the study. The dependent variables included knowledge about obesity-related Type 2 diabetes, healthy eating behavior, healthy eating self-efficacy, healthy eating self-control, and BMI. The study interventions were the SSII-Healthy Eating Intervention Program, and the SSII-Physical Activity Intervention Program. Each of the two interventions was created using the self-efficacy, self-control, and implementation intention principles. The sample was first implemented with the SSII-Healthy Eating Intervention Program, followed by the SSII-Physical Activity Intervention. Data analysis was performed using SPSS for Windows. The statistical tests were descriptive statistics and One-way repeated measures ANOVA. Results showed that: 1) after the individual SSII-Healthy Eating Intervention Program; mean scores of knowledge about obesity-related Type 2 diabetes, healthy eating self-efficacy, healthy eating self-control, and healthy eating behavior significantly increased from the baseline and BMI significantly decreased. 2) The combined effect of the SSII-Healthy Eating and Physical Activity Intervention Programs on healthy eating behavior was greater than that of the individual SSII-Healthy Eating Intervention, but not for BMI.