Summer Weight Gain Among Preschool-Aged Children With Obesity: An Observational Study in Head Start

Beckerman-Hsu, Jacob P; Aftosmes‐Tobio, Alyssa; Lansburg, Kindra; Leonard, Jessie; Torrico, Merieka; Kenney, Erica L.; Subramanian, S. V.; Haneuse, Sebastien; Davison, Kirsten K.

doi:10.5888/pcd18.200532

Prev. Chronic Dis.

2021

DOI: 10.5888/pcd18.200532

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Summer Weight Gain Among Preschool-Aged Children With Obesity: An Observational Study in Head Start

Jacob P Beckerman-Hsu

Alyssa Aftosmes‐Tobio

Kindra Lansburg

et al.

Abstract: School-aged children gain weight most rapidly in summer, but few studies have investigated summer weight gain among preschool-aged children. We fit continuous linear spline mixed models to test for accelerated summer weight gain among 2,044 children attending 16 Boston-area Head Start programs between fall 2016 and spring 2019. Academic year and summer rates of change in modified body mass index z-score differed ( P < .001), with accelerated summer weight gain most pronounced among child… Show more

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2024

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Cited by 2 publications

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Free Summer Programming and Body Mass Index Among Schoolchildren From Low-Income Households

Beets,

Burkart,

Pfledderer

et al. 2024

JAMA Pediatr

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ImportanceChildren experience accelerated gains in body mass index (BMI) during the summer months when school is not in session. Children from low-income households are most susceptible. Accelerated BMI gain in summer may be due to the removal of the health-promoting structure provided by schools. During summer, a common form of health-promoting structure is summer day camps (SDCs). Summer day camps are predominately fee for service, which creates a financial barrier for children from low-income households. One solution to mitigate accelerated BMI gain is providing free access to an existing SDC.ObjectiveTo investigate whether providing free access to an existing community SDC can mitigate accelerated BMI z score (zBMI) gain in elementary school–age children.Design, Setting, and ParticipantsThis randomized clinical trial was conducted during the summers of 2021, 2022, and 2023 in the southeastern United States. Participants were children (kindergarten through fourth grade) from predominantly low-income households who were randomized to attend an SDC operated by a parks and recreation commission or continue summer as usual (control).InterventionFree SDC every weekday (Monday through Friday) for 8 to 10 weeks.Main Outcomes and MeasuresThe primary outcome was between-group differences in change of zBMI measured before school ended (May) and on return to school from summer (late August). Secondary analyses examined the dose response of zBMI change with parent-reported child attendance at SDCs during the summer for all children (intervention and control).ResultsA total of 422 children (mean [SD] age, 8.2 [1.5] years; 202 [48%] female, 220 [52%] male, 292 [69%] at or below 200% federal poverty level, 127 [30%] with food insecurity) were randomized to 1 of 2 conditions: summer as usual (control, n = 199) or free SDC (n = 223). Intent-to-treat analysis indicated mean (SE) change in zBMI at the end of the summer was 0.046 (0.027) for the control and −0.048 (0.025) for the intervention group, representing a significant between-group difference of −0.094 (95% CI, −0.166 to −0.022). Dose-response analyses indicated that every 1 day per week increase in attending an SDC resulted in a −0.034 to −0.018 zBMI reduction, which translates to a gain of 0.046 to 0.080 zBMI for children never attending summer programming vs −0.09 to −0.04 zBMI reduction for children attending summer programming every weekday.Conclusions and RelevanceProviding children free access to existing community summer programming can have a meaningful effect on children’s zBMI gain during the summer. Future studies should replicate these findings across different regions and identify the optimal dose of programming to mitigate unhealthy zBMI gains.Trial RegistrationClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04072549

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Free Summer Programming and Body Mass Index Among Schoolchildren From Low-Income Households

Beets,

Burkart,

Pfledderer

et al. 2024

JAMA Pediatr

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Differences in elementary-age children’s accelerometer - measured physical activity between school and summer: three-year findings from the What’s UP (Undermining Prevention) with summer observational cohort study

Beets,

Burkart,

Pfledderer

et al. 2024

Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act

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Background Among elementary-aged children (5-12yrs), summer vacation is associated with accelerated gains in Body Mass Index (BMI). A key behavioral driver of BMI gain is a lack of physical activity (PA). Previous studies indicate PA decreases during summer, compared to the school year but whether this difference is consistent among boys and girls, across age, and by income status remains unclear. This study examined differences in school and summer movement behaviors in a diverse cohort of children across three years. Methods Children (N = 1,203, age range 5–14 years, 48% girls) wore wrist-placed accelerometers for a 14-day wear-period during school (April/May) and summer (July) in 2021 to 2023, for a total of 6 timepoints. Mixed-effects models examined changes in school vs. summer movement behaviors (moderate-to-vigorous physical activity [MVPA], sedentary) for boys and girls, separately, and by age and household income groups (low, middle, and upper based on income-to-poverty ratio). Results Children provided a total of 35,435 valid days of accelerometry. Overall, boys (+ 9.1 min/day, 95CI 8.1 to 10.2) and girls (+ 6.2 min/day, 95CI 5.4 to 7.0) accumulated more MVPA during school compared to summer. Boys accumulated less time sedentary (-9.9 min/day, 95CI -13.0 to -6.9) during school, while there was no difference in sedentary time (-2.7 min/day, 95CI -5.7 to 0.4) for girls. Different patterns emerged across ages and income groups. Accumulation of MVPA was consistently greater during school compared to summer across ages and income groups. Generally, the difference between school and summer widened with increasing age, except for girls from middle-income households. Accumulation of sedentary time was higher during school for younger children (5-9yrs), whereas for older children (10-14yrs), sedentary time was greater during summer for the middle- and upper-income groups. For boys from low-income households and girls from middle-income households, sedentary time was consistently greater during summer compared to school across ages. Conclusions Children are less active and more sedentary during summer compared to school, which may contribute to accelerated BMI gain. However, this differs by biological sex, age, and income. These findings highlight the complex factors influencing movement behaviors between school and summer.

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Summer Weight Gain Among Preschool-Aged Children With Obesity: An Observational Study in Head Start

Cited by 2 publications

References 11 publications

Free Summer Programming and Body Mass Index Among Schoolchildren From Low-Income Households

Free Summer Programming and Body Mass Index Among Schoolchildren From Low-Income Households

Differences in elementary-age children’s accelerometer - measured physical activity between school and summer: three-year findings from the What’s UP (Undermining Prevention) with summer observational cohort study

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