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Healthy BMI found among children enrolled in Head Start
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A healthier BMI was found upon kindergarten entry among children enrolled in the Head Start program compared with children in a primary health care system, according to recent study findings published in Pediatrics.
“For preschool-aged children in poverty who are overweight or obese, clinicians may encourage families to enroll the child in Head Start,” Julie C. Lumeng, MD, of the University of Michigan, told Endocrine Today. “Participating in Head Start may have beneficial effects on children's body mass index and may be one strategy for addressing obesity or overweight.”
Julie C. Lumeng
Lumeng and colleagues evaluated 19,230 preschool aged children attending Head Start to determine if the program is associated with health changes in BMI. Control groups included 5,405 children participating in a Michigan primary care system Medicaid program and 19,320 enrolled in the same system but not receiving Medicaid. Of the Head Start participants, 16.8% were obese and 16.6% were overweight, whereas 12.3% of the participants in Medicaid were obese and 14.9% were overweight and 6.8% of the participants without Medicaid were obese and 11.9% were overweight.
There was a greater significant decline in BMI z score for children with obesity over the first academic year in the Head Start group (beta= -0.7) compared with the Medicaid (beta=-0.07) and no Medicaid groups (beta= -0.15). Similarly, the Head Start group had a greater but not statistically significant decline in BMI z score over the subsequent summer (beta= -0.31) compared with the Medicaid (beta= -0.49) and no Medicaid groups (beta= -0.33).
There was a greater significant decline in BMI z score for children with overweight over the first academic year in the Head Start group (beta= -0.36) compared with the Medicaid (beta= -0.04) and no Medicaid groups (beta= -0.03). However, over the subsequent summer there was an upward rebound in BMI z score for the Head Start group (beta=0.17) compared with the Medicaid (beta= -0.2) and no Medicaid groups (beta= -0.36).
At follow-up participants in the Head Start group were less obese, less overweight and less underweight compared with the other groups.
“Head Start participation was associated with robust, early and sustained beneficial effects on children’s BMI such that by the age of entry to kindergarten, children participating in Head Start had significantly healthier BMI than children enrolled in Medicaid in general and children not enrolled in Medicaid,” the researchers wrote. “Head Start is associated with improved social and educational outcomes for low-income children. Healthy changes in BMI may be an additional benefit of Head Start participation.” – by Amber Cox
For more information:
Julie C. Lumeng, MD, can be reached at jlumeng@umich.edu.
Disclosure: The study was funded in part by the NIH.
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