Grant: Project Grant

Childhood obesity is a major public health challenge in Canada. Without intervention, overweight children will likely continue to be overweight during adolescence and adulthood. If current trends continue, by 2040, up to 70% of adults aged 40 years will be either overweight or obese. Family-based lifestyle programs delivered at local communities can be effective. However, many families cannot attend these in-person programs due to travel distances and program availabilities. Additionally, these programs are not tailored to the family's culture, motivation level and personal goals. With continued improvements in the sophistication and access to digital communication technology (e.g. Internet, wearables, smartphones), delivering tailored lifestyle programs using these tools may be well-suited to meet these challenges. The goal of this project is to evaluate the effectiveness of a stand-alone web-based and a blended in-person and web-based program in improving health-related outcomes in children who are overweight or obese. This project can be incredibly impactful for B.C. residents as this web-based program can improve the access, reach and personalization of family-based childhood obesity prevention programs.