Design of an educational strategy based on Intervention Mapping for nutritional health promotion in Child Care Centers

Publication date: Available online 12 June 2019Source: Evaluation and Program PlanningAuthor(s): Alejandra Jiménez-Aguilar, María Guadalupe Rodríguez-Oliveros, Rebeca Uribe-Carvajal, Marco Aurelio González-Unzaga, Ericka Ileana Escalante-Izeta, Hortensia Reyes-MoralesAbstractEarly childhood is a critical period for instilling healthy habits to prevent overweight and obesity. This paper describes the development of an educational intervention for the promotion of healthy eating and physical activity among two-to-four-year-old children in public child care centers (CCCs) in Mexico City. Following the Intervention Mapping (IM) protocol, we developed the Bright Futures multidisciplinary intervention. First, a formative research process to identify the personal and environmental determinants of childhood overweight and obesity, behavioral outcomes and performance objectives was conducted. Then, a matrix of change objectives by intersecting the performance objectives with the determinants was integrated. Bright Futures lasted six months and included 24 weekly sessions, each composed of five phases: warm-up, theory, active movements, relaxation and hydration. Ad hoc interactive teaching materials focused on recreational activities, and formulated plans for the adoption, implementation and process/impact evaluation of the intervention was developed. IM successfully guided the design of a theory-driven and evidence-based intervention for children in CCCs within a socio-ecological ...
Source: Evaluation and Program Planning - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research