Bruce G. Simons-Morton

School Promotion of Healthful Diet and Physical Activity: Impact on Learning Outcomes and Self-Reported Behavior

The Go For Health Program included classroom health education and environmental changes in school lunch and physical education to foster healthful diet and exercise among elementary school children. Interventions were based on social learning theory and implementation was based on an organizational change strategy for school innovations. Two schools were assigned to intervention and two to control conditions. Cognitive measures (behavioral capability, self-efficacy, behavioral expectations) and self-reported diet and exercise behavior were assessed at baseline and following intervention. Data were analyzed by ANOVA using the student and then the school as the unit of analysis. Statistically significant changes were observed for diet behavioral capability, self-efficacy, and behavioral expectations, use of salt, and exercise behavioral capability (fourth grade), self-efficacy (fourth grade) and frequency of participation in aerobic activity. The results provide evidence for program impact on learning outcomes and student behavior.

Children and Fitness: A Public Health Perspective.

Abstract The promotion of cardiorespiratory fitness through increased physical activity has become a national public health objective for both adults and children. Based on numerous small-scale studies it appears that children are highly fit but the population distribution is unknown due to the lack of rigorous population studies. Very little is known about the extent of childrens physical activity; the available evidence does not support the hypothesis that children obtain sufficient activity to explain their generally high levels of fitness. Due to the lack of evidence of substantial carry-over effects of youth fitness to adult health and the likelihood of childrens resistance to vigorous fitness routines, there is little reason to recommend an aerobic training focus in physical education. A focus on enjoyable moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) with carry-over value to adulthood is recommended. Physical education is an important vehicle for promoting physical activity by children; it appear...

A Center-Based Program for Exercise Change among Black-American Families

A center-based program was designed and implemented to promote aerobic physical activity among healthy Black-American families with children in the fifth through seventh grades. Ninety-four Black-American families were actively recruited and randomly as signed to an experimental or control group. Families in the experimental group were encouraged to participate in a program with the following features: one education and two fitness sessions per week for 14 weeks; educational sessions that included individual counseling, small group education, aerobic activity, and snack components; located in a convenient building cherished by the community; aerobic activity sessions in a fitness center outfitted and staffed according to modern characteristics; a variety of incentives including free transportation and babysitting and reminders to promote attendance. Per cent participation was low, with about 20% participating in the desired fitness center sessions by the end of the program. As a result of low participation, no differences were detected beween experimental and control groups on indicators of cardiovascular fitness. In postprogram interviews, conflicts with work and school events were the most commonly reported reasons for nonattendance. We concluded that because of difficulties in at tendance, center-based programs appear to have limited value as the sole modality for intervention in public health programs for promoting physical activity among healthy,

Health Promotion: Integrating Organizational Change and Student Learning Strategies

The background and conceptual support for a model for planned change in schools are presented to facilitate the adoption, implementation, and maintenance of health promotion innovations. The model proposes four phases of change: (1) institutional commitment, (2) alterations in policies and practices, (3) alterations in roles and actions of staff, and (4) student learning activities. The model can be applied to influ ence organizational change in multiple components of the school health program to predispose, enable, and reinforce student health behavior.

Effectiveness and Cost Effectiveness of Persuasive Communications and Incentives in Increasing Safety Belt Use

The Safety Belt Connection Project was a worksite health promotion project con ducted at a medical school and hospital complex to test the effectiveness and cost effectiveness of four treatment conditions (TCs): TCl, Persuasive Communications (PCs) alone; TC2, PCs plus overt monitoring; TC3, PCs plus incentives; and TC4, PCs plus incentives and prompts. Parking lots were randomized to treatment condition. A community traffic intersection served as a comparison group. Trained observers re corded safety belt use rates (SBURs) of subjects (front seat occupants) over a two- week period at baseline and after a four-week period of intervention. Results were analyzed by chi-square comparisons of pre-treatment and post-treatment SBURs. At baseline, significant differences in SBURs between treatment groups were observed. Significant pre-to-post differences were found for TC3 and TC4: the SBUR in TC3 went from 18.3% - 38.4% (p < 0.001) and the SBUR in TC4 went from 16.9%- 44.8% (p < 0.001). Both TC3 and TC4 were effective, but TC4 cost 2.6 times more per person influenced to wear their safety belt.