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The incidence of adolescents who are overweight or obese has increased dramatically over the past 20 years across the globe, with approximately 34.2 percent of teens now being overweight (i.e., a gender and age-specific body mass index [BMI] at or above the 85th percentile, or obese, which is defined as a gender and age-specific body mass index (BMI) at or above the 95th percentile). Being overweight predisposes adolescents to adverse health outcomes compared to their non-overweight counterparts, including Type 2 diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia, sleep apnea, increased asthma symptoms and a shortened life span. Overweight and obese adolescents, in comparison to normal weight adolescents, also have a higher prevalence of school and mental health problems, including poor academic performance and self-esteem, depressive disorders, and a greater number of reported suicide attempts. Therefore, it is imperative to deliver evidence-based interventions to prevent overweight and obesity in at-risk teens. The purpose of this evidence review was to identify key components of efficacious interventions that prevent overweight and obesity in adolescents.
Methods:
An evidence review was conducted identifying randomized controlled trials of interventions to prevent overweight and obesity in adolescents.
Results:
Multi-component interventions lead to the best outcomes in preventing overweight/obesity in teens, including those that contain cognitive-behavior skills building, nutrition education and physical activity.
Conclusion:
It is necessary to translate evidence-based interventions into real world practice settings in order to prevent the growing incidence of overweight and obesity in adolescents. Future research should include randomized controlled trials with long-term follow-up and dissemination/implementation studies in real world clinical and school-based settings.