Effects of a 12-week, school-based obesity management program on obese primary school children

Purpose:This study was designed to determine the effects of a school-based obesity-management program on obese primary school children. Methods:A total of 995 children (6–12 years old) in a primary school were screened in March 2008, and of those, 101 obese students (44 boys and 57 girls, body mass index (BMI) ?#249;5 percentile) were enrolled for a study group. The school- based, obesity management program, which includes physical exercise and nutritional education, was conducted as part of an extracurricular program for 12 weeks. The measurement of height, weight, waist circumference, blood pressure (BP), and bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) was performed before and after the program. Results:Height and weight increased significantly (P