Results of the 3 Pillars Study (3PS), a relationship-based programme targeting parent-child interactions, healthy lifestyle behaviours, and the home environment in parents of preschool-aged children: A pilot randomised controlled trial

Abstract

Background Early childhood is a critical period for the development of obesity, with new approaches to prevent obesity in this age group needed. We designed and piloted the 3 Pillars Study (3PS), a healthy lifestyle programme informed by attachment theory for parents of preschool-aged children. Methods A 2-arm, randomised controlled pilot study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of 3PS, a 6-week programme involving a half-day workshop plus 6-week access to a study website. The programme was designed to promote routines around healthy lifestyle behaviours, including sleep, limited screen use, and family meals, within the context of positive, reciprocal parent-child interactions. Parents (n = 54) of children aged 2-4 years who regularly exceeded screen use recommendations (�1 hour per day), were randomised to the 3PS programme (n = 27) or a wait-list control group (n = 27). Child screen time at 6 weeks was the primary endpoint. Frequency of family meals, parent feeding practices, diet quality, sleep, Child Routine Inventory (to assess predictability of commonly occurring routines), and household chaos were also assessed. Study data were collected online at baseline, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks via REDCap.

Nonpharmacological Interventions to Lengthen Sleep Duration in Healthy Children

“…The primary analysis found that sleep interventions were associated with 10.5 minutes (95% CI, 5.6-15.4; P < .001) longer nocturnal sleep duration compared with the control condition. Figure 2 shows the primary meta-analysis forest plot, with quality assessments . There was marked heterogeneity across study estimates ( I 2 = 87.2%).…”

Household chaos, maternal stress, and maternal health behaviors in the United States during the COVID-19 outbreak

“…Incorporating daily routines and planning have produced promising results for improving mothers’ physical activity and sleep, as found in a physical activity planning intervention which resulted in additional parent physical activity 23 and child physical activity (ages = 6–12 years). 24 Another intervention in 54 parent–child dyads (ages = 2–5 years) that specifically targeted home routines resulted in lower household chaos and more child sleep, 25 which may be promising for also facilitating maternal sleep. Still, programs should be pragmatic so participation does not add to the mother’s current stress.…”

Are clinical trials randomising households to lifestyle interventions to delay cognitive decline feasible? A pilot study to determine the beliefs, preferences, and deterrents for households impacted by dementia based on semi-structured interviews

“…Families shape health at an individual level by not only influencing wellbeing at a genetic level, but at an environmental level [ 56 , 57 ], with members often demonstrating shared behaviours including diet, physical activity and smoking. Despite this, there have been limited studies with households and families as the target unit of randomisation, with most household-level trials in the literature focusing on investigating behavioural change environments for children [ 12 , 58 , 59 ]. By intervening at household level, it is hypothesised that lifestyle adaptations will be better sustained by changing the overall routine and habitual patterns of families.…”