Nutrition Intervention Program Improves Serum Lipid Profile of Obese Children in Select Schools from Chennai

Objective: The objective of this study was to devise an intervention program to improve body mass index (BMI) and serum lipid profile of obese school children in the age group of 10 to 15 years. Materials and Methods: The study comprised of a survey and pretest and posttest experimental design and was conducted over the course of a year. The total of 4289 children from 11 schools were screened for obesity based on age and gender specific cut-off values for BMI. Of the 193 children found to be obese, 49 children enrolled for the intervention program and were assigned to three specific groups using purposive sampling. Group I (Control), Group II (Nutrition Counseling) and Group III (Nutrition counseling and Exercise) comprised of 13, 19, and 17 children-at-risk, respectively. Descriptive analysis was used for assessing details regarding their dietary and physical activity pattern. Paired t-test was used to assess data pertaining to anthropometric measurements such as height, body weight, BMI, waist circumference and serum lipid parameters (total cholesterol [TC], high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol [HDL-C], low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol [LDL-C], very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, ratio of TC/HDL-C and serum triglycerides). Results: Post intervention, BMI was found to be stable, and there was a significant increase (P < 0.01) in serum HDL-C levels and a significant decrease (P < 0.01) in the ratio of TC/HDL-C in Group III and a significant increase (P < 0.05) in serum HDL-C levels alone in Group II subjects. Conclusion: The intervention study highlights the maintenance of BMI and improvement in serum lipid parameters of children-at-risk who received periodic nutrition counseling.