Unique Obesity Prevention Program Benefits Weight, Motor Skills in Mexican-American Preschoolers

Share On Social!

A new culturally tailored, multi-component obesity prevention program among minority preschool children can help create an environment that positively impacts weight and gross motor skill development in children at risk for obesity, according to a new study in the journal Childhood Obesity.

For the program, called Míranos!, researchers from UT San Antonio and the Institute for Health Promotion Research at the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio tested whether it is possible to indoctrinate students with healthy behaviors — for life — via several positive interactions with their parents, teachers and school workers and a supportive learning environment at school and home.

Researchers tested the program among predominantly Mexican-American kids enrolled in Head Start in San Antonio, Texas.

Favorable changes occurred in weight scores, gross motor skill development, outdoor physical activity and eating healthy food among the children who participated in Míranos!.

“Míranos! is a unique example of using a systems approach to create change at multiple levels and synergize multiple components to promote changes in preschool children’s physical activity and dietary behaviors,” the researchers concluded.

Learn more here.