A Healthy Generation
A Healthy Generation aims to increase physical activity and encourage a healthy lifestyle in families in disadvantaged areas in Sweden. Participants were 8 to 9-year-old children (n=67) and their parents (n=94). Four schools were included in this controlled study (2 intervention/2 control).
The nine-month A Healthy Generation programme is run by a foundation A Healthy Generation in close cooperation with municipalities and local organisations. Families are invited to activities twice a week, such as soccer, basketball, dance, boxing, outdoor activities and ice-skating.
Aim
The aim of this study is to evaluate, quantitatively and qualitatively, the effects of the programme A Healthy Generation in children aged 8-9 years old and their families in areas with low socio-economic status.
The programme
The programme includes four intervention components:
- Activity sessions
- Healthy meals
- Health information
- Parental support group sessions
Primary outcome:
Physical activity and sedentary time
Secondary outcomes:
- Physical activity habits
- Sedentary behaviour
- Anthopometry
- Metabolic risk factors
- Quality of life
Process evaluation
Fidelity to the intervention, barriers and facilitators to continue being physically active and participate in local organisations after the intervention.
Ongoing studies
The evaluation of the program is performed as a controlled intervention study in collaboration with researchers at the Department of Medicine, Karolinska Institutet.
This research project will be conducted in three studies:
- A controlled intervention study to evaluate physical activity, sedentary behaviour, cardiovascular risk, quality of life and a qualitative interview study examining psychosocial health
- Qualitative interview studies to examine facilitating factors for the participating families to continue being physically active after the intervention
- Health economic assessment of the programme