With pediatric obesity becoming common and children developing type 2 diabetes and other obesity-related complications at an earlier age, it is critical that we develop effective obesity prevention programs for children. Parent employment impacts child physical activity levels, nutritional intake and risk of obesity. In this application, we specifically focus on mothers who are nurses and their 6-10 year old children. The primary goal of the project is to develop and pilot test the feasibility of a physical activity program that models, teaches and facilitates increased physical activity in the workflow of obese female registered nurses who are parents of a child 6-10 years old. The study is based on our prior research experience related to parent training and examining differences in non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT) between lean and obese persons. Obese adults and children stand and walk for significantly less time each day compared to their lean counterparts. Our central premise is that modifying parent physical activity levels can indirectly shape and increase their children's physical activity levels resulting over time in the prevention of child overweight and obesity. The primary hypothesis is that nurses'physical activity levels at work can be increased through a work site intervention that integrates physical activity into the daily workflow. The secondary hypothesis is that changes in the physical activity levels of obese nurses who participate in a work site physical activity intervention will be correlated with changes in the physical activity levels of their 6-10 year old children. We propose to first conduct observations (n=20) and focus groups (n=40) with lean and obese registered nurses from inpatient medical and surgical nursing care units to assist in the redesign of the patient care units in order to facilitate walking and standing into the workflow of nursing care. Redesign activities will include placement of walking workstations, standing workstations, implementation of walking rounds, and promotion of stair use and walking breaks. Following the development of the intervention, we will study 24 mother-child dyads consisting of obese mothers who are inpatient registered nurses, and their 6-10 year old children. The intervention will involve increasing daily walking and standing (ambulatory activity) by 2/hours per day for 8 weeks, with at least one of the hours completed at the work site. Using a research grade instrument for measuring daily ambulatory activity, we will study participant daily number of steps before and after the physical activity intervention. This intervention is founded in behavior modification and social cognitive theory and aims to directly modify parent physical activity levels and indirectly child levels. This initial, collaborative study is crucial for developing effective future obesity interventions in this study population. Public Health Relevance: Childhood obesity prevention programs that target working parents and their children are sorely needed. This study explores if physical activity can be built into the workflow of obese nurses to increase their physical activity levels at work and if this in turn increases their activity at home and their children's physical activity levels.
| Tucker, Sharon J; Lanningham-Foster, Lorraine M; Murphy, Justyne N et al. (2011) Effects of a worksite physical activity intervention for hospital nurses who are working mothers. AAOHN J 59:377-86 |
