Physical Activity and Food Environments in and around Schools: A Case Study in Regional North-West Tasmania

Jayasinghe, Sisitha; Flies, Emily J.; Soward, Robert; Kendal, Dave; Kilpatrick, Michelle; Cleland, Verity; Roberts, Rebecca; Norzahari, Fadhillah; Davern, Melanie; Holloway, Timothy P.; Murray, Sandra; Patterson, K; Ahuja, Kiran; Hughes, Roger; Byrne, Nuala M.; Hills, Andrew P.

doi:10.3390/ijerph19106238

Cited by 5 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 88 publications

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“…Much of the existing evidence base being underpinned by linear models of cause and effect is also exacerbating this issue. The whole-of-systems approach of the CAPITOL Project, along with 3 years of preliminary work [58][59][60] and early and frequent engagement of stakeholders in all aspects of project planning, is expected to elicit maximal translatory potential of the current SP initiative. Further, community-wide, representative consultation and equity in decision-making and agenda setting is also considered best practice in this line of intervention [53].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure”: Proposal for a Social Prescribing Strategy for Obesity Prevention and Improvement in Health and Well-being (Preprint)

Jayasinghe¹,

Holloway²,

Soward³

et al. 2022

Preprint

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BACKGROUND Social and behavioral determinants of health are increasingly recognized as central to effective person-centered intervention in clinical practice, disease management, and public health. Accordingly, social prescribing (SP) has received increased attention in recent times. The rampant global prevalence of obesity indicates that the customary, reductionistic, and disease-oriented biomedical approach to health service delivery is inadequate/ineffective at arresting the spread and mitigating the damaging consequences of the condition. There is an urgent need to shift the focus from reactive downstream disease-based treatments to more proactive, upstream, preventive action. In essence, this requires more effort to affect the paradigm shift from the traditional “biomedical approach of care” to a “biopsychosocial model” required to arrest the increasing prevalence of obesity. To this end, an SP approach, anchored in systems thinking, could be an effective means of moderating prevalence and consequences of obesity at a community level. OBJECTIVE The proposed SP intervention has the following three key objectives: (1) build a sustainable program for Circular Head based on SP, peer education, and health screening to minimize the incidence of obesity and related lifestyle diseases; (2) increase service and workforce connectivity and collaboration and initiate the introduction of new services and activities for obesity prevention and community health promotion; and (3) enhance health and well-being and minimize preventable adverse health outcomes of obesity and related lifestyle diseases through enhancement of food literacy and better nutrition, enhancement of physical literacy and habitual personal activity levels, and improvement of mental health, community connectedness, and reduction of social isolation. METHODS This paper describes a prospective SP strategy aimed at obesity prevention in Circular Head, a local government area in Northwest (NW) Tasmania. SP is a prominent strategy used in the Critical Age Periods Impacting the Trajectory of Obesogenic Lifestyles Project, which is an initiative based in NW Tasmania focused on assessing obesity prevention capacity. A social prescription model that facilitates the linkage of primary health screening with essential health care, education, and community resources through a dedicated “navigator” will be implemented. Four interlinked work packages will be implemented as part of the initial plan with each either building on existing resources or developing new initiatives. RESULTS A multimethod approach to triangulate insights from quantitative and qualitative research that enables the assessment of impact on individuals, community groups, and the health care system will be implemented within the initial pilot phase of the project. CONCLUSIONS Literature is replete with rhetoric advocating complex system approaches to curtail obesity. However, real-life examples of whole-of-systems interventions operationalized in ways that generate relevant evidence or effective policies are rare. The diverse approach for primary prevention of obesity-related lifestyle diseases and strategies for improvement of health and well-being described in this instance will contribute toward closing this evidence gap. CLINICALTRIAL INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT PRR1-10.2196/41280

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure”: Proposal for a Social Prescribing Strategy for Obesity Prevention and Improvement in Health and Well-being (Preprint)

Jayasinghe¹,

Holloway²,

Soward³

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Retrospective analysis of regional and metropolitan school food environments using Google Street View: A case study in New South Wales, Australia with youth consultation

Tse,

Zeng,

Gibson

et al. 2024

Health Prom J of Aust

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Issue AddressedFood environments surrounding schools have a strong influence on the adolescent's food choices. Moreover, the prevalence of diet‐related chronic diseases is higher in regional than metropolitan areas in Australia. Understanding school food environments in these different settings is crucial for informing future strategies to improve adolescent health.MethodsGoogle Street View was used to identify food outlets within 1.6 km around all secondary schools in Wagga Wagga and Blacktown in New South Wales which were selected as regional and metropolitan case study areas. Based on food outlet type, healthfulness categories were assigned, and Chi‐squared tests were performed. The Health Advisory Panel for Youth at the University of Sydney (HAPYUS) were engaged to obtain their perspectives on findings.ResultsUnhealthful food outlets were consistently most prevalent around schools in Wagga Wagga and Blacktown over 17 years. In 2023, these were predominantly restaurants (19.4% vs. 21.1%), cafés (16.8% vs. 11.1%), fast‐food franchise outlets (15.1% vs. 17.4%) and independent takeaway stores (14.1% vs. 9.6%). No significant difference in healthfulness between regional and metropolitan areas was found. Youth advisors recognised price and social reasons as major contributors to food choices.ConclusionsGoogle Street View was used as a novel resource to examine school food environments in regional and metropolitan areas which have remained consistently unhealthful for nearly two decades.So What?Unhealthful school food environments may encourage poor diets and exacerbate rates of adolescent overweight and obesity. Critical government action is needed to improve school food environments.

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Fun, food and friends: A wearable camera analysis of children's school journeys

Gage¹,

Gurtner²,

Keall³

et al. 2023

Journal of Transport & Health

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Physical Activity and Food Environments in and around Schools: A Case Study in Regional North-West Tasmania

Cited by 5 publications

References 88 publications

“An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure”: Proposal for a Social Prescribing Strategy for Obesity Prevention and Improvement in Health and Well-being (Preprint)

“An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure”: Proposal for a Social Prescribing Strategy for Obesity Prevention and Improvement in Health and Well-being (Preprint)

Retrospective analysis of regional and metropolitan school food environments using Google Street View: A case study in New South Wales, Australia with youth consultation

Fun, food and friends: A wearable camera analysis of children's school journeys

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