"We are very encouraged by the results," said S. Bryn Austin, ScD, assistant professor at HSPH and a health researcher at Children's Hospital in Boston. "We are hopeful that carefully designed health promotion programs like this one may help us prevent both eating disorders and overweight at the same time. The protective effect that we found was strong and held up under two rigorously designed studies," she said.

The 5-2-1-Go! Program (eat 5 servings of fruits and vegetables daily, limit screen time to no more than 2 hours a day, and get at least 1 hour of physical activity daily) includes the Planet Health curriculum, which was developed by HSPH researchers. It emphasizes eating a balanced diet, staying physically active and reducing the amount of time spent watching television. A previous study of the Planet Health curriculum had shown a protective effect on disordered weight-control behaviors in girls. The researchers wanted to see if that beneficial effect could be repeated in a larger study among a different group of schools.

The results suggest that it may be possible for school-based programs to help prevent obesity and eating disorder symptoms in adolescent girls. "Unhealthy weight loss behaviors and overweight are taking an enormous toll on the health of young people today," said Karen E. Peterson, director of the Program in Public Health Nutrition at HSPH and an associate professor at the School. "These problems may be linked in a number of ways, and the solutions are likely to be too. Approaches that foster healthy weights by changing lifestyles of youth in schools seem to be very promising."

The authors note that further studies are needed to tackle the question of how other obesity prevention programs are affecting eating disorder symptoms in young people. "We found that our obesity prevention program was safe, that is, it did not worsen eating disorder symptoms and even protected against the development of eating disorder symptoms among girls," said Austin. "The team of scientists and educators who created the program was also very careful not to single out or stigmatize overweight kids. Those involved with other obesity prevention programs in schools and communities around the country should look at the effects of those programs on eating disorder symptoms and weight-related bullying to make sure they're safe for the children."

The study was supported by the Leadership Education in Adolescent Health project, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; the Berkowitz Family Legal Sea Foods Fellowship in Public Health Nutrition at HSPH; and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. Drs. Wiecha and Peterson receive royalties as coauthors of the Planet Health curriculum.

James Newton
Children's Hospital Boston
617-355-6420
james.newton@childrens.harvard.edu

Harvard School of Public Health is dedicated to advancing the public's health through learning, discovery, and communication. More than 300 faculty members are engaged in teaching and training the 900-plus student body in a broad spectrum of disciplines crucial to the health and well being of individuals and populations around the world. Programs and projects range from the molecular biology of AIDS vaccines to the epidemiology of cancer; from risk analysis to violence prevention; from maternal and children's health to quality of care measurement; from health care management to international health and human rights. For more information on the school visit: www.hsph.harvard.edu.

Children's Hospital Boston is home to the world's largest research enterprise based at a pediatric medical center, where its discoveries have benefited both children and adults since 1869. More than 500 scientists, including eight members of the National Academy of Sciences, 11 members of the Institute of Medicine and 10 members of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute comprise Children's research community. Founded as a 20-bed hospital for children, Children's Hospital Boston today is a 377-bed comprehensive center for pediatric and adolescent health care grounded in the values of excellence in patient care and sensitivity to the complex needs and diversity of children and families. Children's also is the primary pediatric teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School. For more information about the hospital and its research visit: www.childrenshospital.org/newsroom.