Parent-focused childhood obesity intervention improvesfamily functioning and children's well-being

Abstract

An Extension-implemented parent-focused childhood obesity intervention designed to improve familyfunctioning around healthful eating and exercise was evaluated. Thirty-six parents and their children, aged 5-13, were randomized to a 12-week intervention condition or control condition. Intervention parents, comparedto control group parents, felt more confident in promoting children's healthful eating and exercise, worried lessabout their children's weight, and engaged in fewer counterproductive parenting behaviors. The children ofthese parents, as compared to children of control group parents, lost weight and displayed better social-emotional functioning. These results highlight Extension's important role in disseminating evidence-basedchildhood obesity interventions.