Cohort Year Sample Clauses

Cohort Year. It is imperative for researchers to gain a deeper understanding of current nutrition settings in schools so interventions can be developed and implemented to improve the general health and wellbeing of their students and reduce their risk of becoming overweight or obese. The current literature indicates that school-based programs are effective but that the effects are not long lasting due to their brevity of implementation. Thus, cohort year was a variable of interest in the current study to explore this relationship further. The CDC and the Institute of Medicine both cite school-based interventions as a valuable way to lower childhood and adolescent obesity rates.34 Even though evidence documents that current school nutrition environments are generally poor, a number of structured school-based interventions have demonstrated that effectively improving these environments can have a favorable impact on both student dietary habits as well as body mass index (BMI). One study that employed a school-based intervention involving a health and wellness program and workshops found that the intervention group significantly increased their fruit and vegetable intake and had lower BMIs than the control group post-intervention.69 Other interventions have been successful in increasing the amount of fruits and vegetables sold through strategic pricing or increasing the availability of each.70 As a whole, however, the positive implications of most school-based interventions have not been effective long-term since these interventions are relatively short in duration. In summary, policy changes and long-term targeted school interventions are the keys to creating long-term changes in school nutrition environments.