The Enjoy Being Fit - Family Approach: To promote healthy weight in childhood.

Since promoting voluntary behaviour change of a target audience is a crucial element in most public health strategies, social marketing may well be applied in this field. The European Epode network, and the Dutch JOGG (Jongeren op gezond gewicht/Healthy weight for youth) initiative recommend using social marketing with respect to the prevention of overweight among children.



However, there are no rigid evaluations available of the feasibility and effectiveness of the social marketing approach applied to local integrated public health strategies to promote healthy weight in childhood. The aim is to develop, implement and evaluate social marketing techniques to improve the reach of disadvantaged youth and families of local integrated public health strategies to promote healthy weight in childhood. By monitoring the “Enjoy being Fit! Family-approach” in Rotterdam, a innovative approaches using social marketing, we propose to create practical tools and formats that may be adapted and applied in other regions nationwide to promote healthy weight in childhood, especially with regard to disadvantaged children and families.



The “Enjoy being Fit! Family-approach” is an extension of the regular Enjoy Being Fit! program, additionally aiming also to incorporate families and communities of the children. The main focus of the “Enjoy being Fit! Family-approach” is a multi-component water campaign.

To curtail the current childhood obesity epidemic, it is important to promote healthy weight among children. In the city of Rotterdam, with many disadvantaged areas and a wide range of ethnic backgrounds, the school-based Enjoy Being Fit! module has proven to be effective in slowing down the prevalence of obesity. However, in order to prevent obesity among children, it is important to increase reach and participation among those at risk and additionally, to incorporate families and cultural differences in the interventions. Therefore, a different approach is applied using social marketing strategies to develop the Enjoy Being Fit! Family Approach. This study will evaluate the effect of this program.

T0: April/May 2011:

1. Measurements of weight, height and waist circumference of the children;

2. Parent questionnaires regarding the different behaviours and its determinants based on the EnRG-framework (Kremers, 2006), parenting styles and practices;

3. Questionnaire for children aged 10-12 years old regarding the different behaviours and its determinants based on the EnRG-framework (Kremers, 2006);

4. Observations regarding the intake of drinks and snacks at 10 o’clock during schooldays.



T0: April/May 2011:

1. Measurements of weight, height and waist circumference of the children;

2. Questionnaire for children aged 10-12 years old regarding the different behaviours and its determinants based on the EnRG-framework (Kremers, 2006);

3. Observations regarding the intake of drinks and snacks at 10 o’clock during schooldays.



T2: June 2012:

1. Measurements of weight, height and waist circumference of the children;

2. Parent questionnaires regarding the different behaviours and its determinants based on the EnRG-framework (Kremers, 2006), parenting styles and practices;

3. Questionnaire for children aged 10-12 years old regarding the different behaviours and its determinants based on the EnRG-framework (Kremers, 2006);

4. Observations regarding the intake of drinks and snacks at 10 o’clock during schooldays.

Water campaign, consisting of activities such as:

1. Pimp up your water bottle (children);

2. Pimp up your water carafe (mothers);

3. Water lessons (children);

4. Water makes you a superhero - gym activity (children);

5. Water glossy (mothers);

6. Enjoy Being Fit! week;

7. Water policy at schools.



There will be 4 schools participating in this trial. All of them are already receiving the Enjoy Being Fit! program. The 2 control schools will continue this program. The 2 intervention schools will receive the additional activities. This intervention will take 15 months (April 2011 to June 2012).