Impact of parental coaching on childhood obesity
Abstract
**Please note that the full text is embargoed** ABSTRACT: Background- Childhood obesity is an epidemic in the United States (US) affecting 12.7 million
children (CDC8, 2015), and costing the US $14.1 billion every year (Cawley, 2010). It also costs
corporate America about $9 billion in direct costs (Adeagbo, 2015) and $4.3 billion in indirect
costs for healthcare expenditures (Cawley, 2010). Studies suggest interventions implemented by
employers involving the whole family are twice as effective as interventions with employees
alone (Adeagbo, 2015).
Methods- This quality improvement pilot study used a quasi-experimental pre and post study
design in an outpatient employee health clinic to evaluate a coaching method for empowering
parents to manage childhood obesity. A convenience sample of 10 employed parents who had
children between the ages of 2-19 years who were overweight or obese and met study criteria,
were enrolled. Three coaching sessions lasting 20-30 minutes were provided before
administering the posttest.
Results- The Mann Whitney U test showed a measurable positive difference after coaching on
healthy behaviors and was statistically and clinically significant (Mann-Whitney U= 80,
Wilcoxon W=125, standard error = 12.26 and p = 0.003).
Conclusion: Findings indicate management of childhood obesity through parental education,
coaching, and family based interventions can promote healthy lifestyle changes among children.