The impact of Action Schools! BC on the health of Aboriginal children and youth living in rural and remote communities in British Columbia

• Published in: International Journal of Circumpolar Health
• Main Authors: Tomlin, Dona, Naylor, PJ, McKay, Heather, Zorzi, Alexandra, Mitchell, Marc, Panagiotopoulos, Constadina
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: International Journal of Circumpolar Health 2012
• Subjects: physical activity; aerobic fitness; cardiovascular risk; children; Aboriginal youth; nutrition; Circumpolar Health; First Nations; International Journal of Circumpolar Health
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1828/12608; https://doi.org/10.3402/ijch.v71i0.17999

Objectives: The aim of the study was to determine the short-term impact of a 7-month whole-school physical activity and healthy eating intervention (Action Schools! BC) over the 2007–2008 school year for children and youth in 3 remote First Nations villages in northwestern British Columbia. Study design: A pre-experimental pre/post design was conducted with 148 children and youth (77 males, 71 females; age 12.5±2.2 yrs). Methods: We evaluated changes in obesity (body mass index [wt/ht2] and waist circumference z-scores: zBMI and zWC), aerobic fitness (20-m shuttle run), physical activity (PA; physical activity questionnaire and accelerometry), healthy eating (dietary recall) and cardiovascular risk (CV risk). Results: zBMI remained unchanged while zWC increased from 0.46±1.07 to 0.57±1.04 (p<0.05). No change was detected in PA or CV risk but aerobic fitness increased by 22% (25.4±15.8 to 30.9±20.0 laps; p<0.01). There was an increase in the variety of vegetables consumed (1.10±1.18 to 1.45±1.24; p<0.05) but otherwise no dietary changes were detected. Conclusions: While no changes were seen in PA or overall CV risk, zWC increased, zBMI remained stable and aerobic fitness improved during a 7-month intervention. This project received funding from the following agencies: The Canadian Council on Learning, British Columbia Medical Services Foundation and the Canadian Diabetes Association. Constadina Panagiotopoulos is the recipient of the Child & Family Research Institute Clinician Scientist Award and the Canadian Diabetes Association Clinician Scientist Award. Faculty Reviewed