Healthy School Lunches at Primary Schools in Rotterdam

Launched by ERASMUS MEDICAL CENTER · Sep 21, 2023

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

This clinical trial is studying the impact of providing healthy school lunches to primary school children in Rotterdam. The goal is to see if these lunches can help improve the eating habits of children and make it easier for them to enjoy healthier meals. The trial will involve children aged 4 to 12 from schools that are already part of a program called "Enjoy Being Fit!" Researchers will gather information at three different points during the school year, using surveys and observations to learn about the children's food choices, taste preferences, and satisfaction with the lunches.

To be eligible for the trial, schools must have a high number of students with overweight or obesity and be willing to work with researchers to create a lunch program that works for their students. All children in the participating schools can receive the healthy lunches, even if their parents don’t consent to the research. Parents and teachers will also be asked to fill out surveys to provide their insights. This study is important because it aims to promote better eating habits among children, which can help combat rising obesity rates.

Gender

ALL

Eligibility criteria

• Inclusion Criteria:
• • Schools: Schools will be included if they are a LF! school, have a high deprivation score and ≥ 20% overweight/obesity, and are willing to participate in the project irrespective of starting in the intervention or control period. Schools should be willing to facilitate retrieving consent from parents and should provide students time to complete the questionnaire during school hours. They should also be willing to participate in a co-creation event, in which the lunch concept for their school will be designed together with school staff, parents, and children. Schools should be willing to facilitate the implementation of a healthy school lunch and should not provide any extra activities regarding healthy school lunches during the control period.
• • Children: All children of the participating schools will be eligible to receive a healthy school lunch, also if parents do not provide informed consent for the research project. Data will be gathered for all children for whom informed consent is provided for participating in the data gathering. Informed consent must be signed by the parents of children who are allowed to participate in the research activities (observations and questionnaires) in the school. Additionally, when children are 12 years or older they have to sign an informed consent themselves.
• • Parents: All parents with children in the participating schools will be included into the project to complete questionnaires. Informed consent must be signed by the parent.
• • Teachers: All teachers in participating will be included into the project to complete questionnaires. Informed consent must be signed by the teacher.
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • The non-compliance of the inclusion criteria will be considered as exclusion criteria.