Clinical Research Directory

School Meals in Denmark

This study looks at how a national school meal program affects the health, well-being, and learning of Danish schoolchildren aged 10 to 15 years. The study is part of the Danish National School Meal Pilot Program (2025-2028), which provides free school meals at selected public schools. Some school classes receive free school meals, while other classes do not and are used for comparison. Children are followed for about 1.5 years. Information is collected before and after the program using simple health measurements, questionnaires about well-being, and age-appropriate cognitive tests. The study also uses information from Danish national registers to better understand the children's background and to study longer-term outcomes related to health, education, and social conditions. In addition, the study examines whether school meal programs are cost-effective by comparing their costs with potential benefits for children and society. The goal of the study is to find out whether free school meals can improve children's health, well-being, and learning, and help reduce social differences.

Effectiveness of School-Based Time-Restricted Eating for the Prevention and Control of Obesity in Children

Childhood obesity has become a major global public health challenge. Obesity can not only affects children's physical and mental health during childhood but may also persist into adulthood, significantly increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease. Therefore, effective prevention and control of childhood obesity can shift the prevention window forward and promote the prevention of cardiovascular disease. Recently, time-restricted eating (TRE) has gained attention in adult studies for its feasibility, as it involves "time control without calorie restriction," demonstrating weight loss effects comparable to energy restriction and higher feasibility. Here, the investigators designed a school-based cluster randomized controlled trial to investigate the effectiveness of 12-hour TRE in preventing and controlling childhood obesity. Schools were randomly assigned to either the intervention group or the control group, and participants were recruited from each school at the class level, ensuring that each group included at least 690 children. The control group received routine health education, while the intervention group received 12-hour TRE in addition to routine health education. After a 9-month intervention period (one academic year), the two groups will be compared in terms of weight management and childhood obesity prevalence.

Healthy Children, Healthy Communities: Effectiveness of a Multilevel Rural Community Engagement Model for Improving Children's Dietary Intake in Family Child Care Homes

The purpose of this study is to find out whether a program called "Healthy Children, Healthy Communities" can help young children in rural areas eat healthier and improve their health. The study focuses on children ages 3 to 5 who attend family childcare homes in rural communities. The main goal is to see if the program can: Help children eat healthier foods, like more fruits and vegetables. Support childcare providers in using positive mealtime practices that encourage healthy eating. The study will involve about 120 licensed family childcare providers in rural areas who participate in the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), along with about 240 children they care for. Childcare providers will be randomly placed into one of two groups: EAT Family Style Group (Intervention Group): Complete 7 online training modules over 16 weeks about healthy mealtime practices. Join 7 individual coaching sessions on Zoom. Record short videos of their mealtimes to get personalized feedback from a coach. Work with a coach to set goals and make plans to improve mealtimes. Receive printed materials and conversation cards to use during meals. Some providers may join Zoom interviews to share their experiences. Better Kid Care Group (Comparison Group): Complete 10 online modules about general childcare topics like child development, oral health, play, and managing a childcare home. For both groups, the research team will: Ask providers to fill out online surveys about how mealtimes work in their childcare homes. Visit the childcare homes to observe and record children's mealtimes on two days at each data collection point. Measure the height and weight of participating children. Use a painless skin scanner (Veggie Meter) to check how many fruits and vegetables children have been eating. Ask providers to complete surveys about the children's eating habits. The study focuses on rural, low-income communities, where children are at higher risk of having poor diets and obesity compared to children in urban areas. Information will be collected at the start of the study, after 16 weeks, and again after 24 weeks to see if there are lasting changes.

Effectiveness of a School-based Obesity Prevention Program on Body Fat At 6 Months of Mexican Children

School-based programs are an essential strategy for preventing obesity, yet the most effective way to implement them remains unclear. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of a school-based obesity prevention program, delivered by different implementers, in comparison to a control group, focusing on body fat reduction in Mexican children. This is a cluster randomized controlled trial. Approximately six public elementary schools (240 children) in Hermosillo, Mexico, will be invited to participate. Schools will be randomly assigned to one of three groups: a program implemented by advanced undergraduate students in Nutrition and Physical Activity (NUT-PA), a program implemented by Physical Education teachers and Physical Activity students (PEST-PA), or a control group. The intervention will consist of a 6-month obesity prevention program that includes nutrition education, physical activity sessions, and parent participation. The control group will continue with their regular school activities. The primary outcome will be the difference in body fat percentage at 6 months between the NUT-PA group and the control group, as well as between the PEST-PA group and the control group. Secondary outcomes will include BMI Z-score, waist circumference, and various lifestyle parameters. A mixed-effects linear analysis will be conducted using an intention-to-treat approach.