RESEARCH ABSTRACT: Healthy Dads Healthy Kids – Evaluation of a Pilot Project to Improve Children’s Health through Their Fathers

Introduction

It is increasingly recognised that fathers have a major influence in the physical, social and emotional development of their children. Healthy Dads Healthy Kids (HDHK), a pilot programme in New South Wales, Australia, directly addresses the influence of fathers on their children by helping overweight fathers improve their health, while also improving the physical activity and eating behaviours of their children. The positive results of HDHK earned the programme the award of the best research project in the 2009 national conference organised by Sports Medicine Australia.

Methodology

The programme was evaluated using a randomised controlled trial design. Participants comprised 53 overweight or obese men with an average age of 40.6 years, an average body mass index (BMI) of 33.2, and their 71 primary school-aged children with an average age of 8.2 years. Slightly over half the children were boys.

Each family unit (comprising a father and one or more child) was randomly assigned to either (i) the HDHK programme (27 fathers, 39 children) or (ii) a “wait-list” group that served as a control group (26 fathers, 32 children).

Data collection was conducted at the baseline, three-month, and six-month point.

One weakness identified of the research design is the lack of long-term follow-up, and the limited sample size

Intervention

The intervention was a three-month long programme comprising eight face-to-face education sessions, which fathers were required to attend. Children attended three of these sessions.

Outcomes

The programme was designed to address several key outcomes. While the primary outcome was fathers’ weight, fathers and their children were assessed at baseline, and at three- and six-month follow-up, for:

• Weight

• Waist circumference

• BMI

• Blood pressure

• Resting heart rate (RHR)

• Objectively measured physical activity

• Self-reported dietary intake.

Unique Features

Several unique features distinguished the programme from other father-child programmes:

• It exclusively targeted overweight fathers to improve their weight, physical activity and dietary behaviours;

• It engaged fathers as key agents of behaviour change in their families;

• Making physical activity fun, and part of father-child interaction, was key to the project. Fathers were encouraged to engage in physical activities with their children each day. The programme incorporated special father-child sessions focused on teaching fathers and children the importance of physical activity to improve physical fitness, fundamental motor skills, rough and tumble play, and fun and active games.

Results

Overall, the HDHK programme resulted in significant weight loss and improved health-related outcomes in fathers, and improved eating and physical activity among children.

Fathers in the programme experienced:

• A higher level of weight loss (-7.6 kg) compared to control group fathers (0.0 kg) at six months, with 85% of fathers involved losing greater than 5% of their initial body weight;

• Increased rates of physical activity;

• Improved overall diet and decreased kilojoule intake;

• Reduced waist circumference;

• Reduced blood pressure and resting heart rates; and

• Sustained improvements from three to six months after the programme.

Children who participated:

• Became more active and fitter;

• Ate more healthily and decreased their kilojoule intake;

• Reduced their resting heart rate; and

• Sustained these benefits at the six-month follow-up.

The programme also had a reasonable retention rate of 80% of participants.

Lessons

The positive results of the HDHK programme show that targeting fathers is a novel and efficacious approach to improving health behavior in their children.

The findings reinforce existing literature indicating that parental modelling can positively influence children’s health behaviours and create healthier home environments.

The programme’s success in recruiting and sustaining the attendance of fathers, while achieving high levels of participant satisfaction also shows that it is possible to engage men in a weight loss programme. In fact, the significant improvement in outcomes for fathers is likely related to their motivation to role model healthy behaviours for their children.

Given the programme’s success and its cost-effective group structure, it may be worthwhile for future family-based programmes to consider how best to include and engage both fathers and mothers in obesity treatment and prevention interventions.

See the following links for more information on the programme and its results:

Results from the Pilot study of Healthy Dads Healthy Kids 2009 (Webpage summary)

Results from the Pilot study of Healthy Dads Healthy Kids 2009 (full version in PDF format)

About the Author: The Dads for Life Resource Team comprises local content writers and experts, including psychologists, counsellors, educators and social service professionals, dedicated to developing useful resources for dads.