Systematic review of parent-based mobile health intervention to promote physical activity, dietary behaviors and reduce sleep problems in preschoolers

Peng Zhou

Research output: Contribution to conferenceConference paperpeer-review

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Preschoolers’ lifestyles have become physically inactive and sedentary, their eating habits unhealthy, and their sleep routines increasingly disturbed. These changes have led to an ever-increasing prevalence of obesity. Parents have a profound impact on the healthy lifestyle of preschoolers and are the key agents of behavioral modification. Improved access and lower costs make mobile health (mHealth) interventions appealing. However, it is currently unclear whether parent-based mHealth intervention may be harnessed to improve the aforementioned lifestyle behaviors. This study aims to systematically review the current literature concerning the effectiveness of parent-based mHealth interven- tion to improve preschoolers’ physical activity (PA), dietary behaviors (DB) and sleep problems.

METHODS: This systematic review conforms to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analysis (PRISMA) statement. Six databases (EMBASE, PubMed, MEDLINE, Web of Science, SPORTDiscus and PsycINFO) were re- trieved for the period from January 2000 to August 2022. Studies were eligible if (1) they were quantitative study designs; (2) they targeted parents of children aged 3-6 years and used an mHealth modality; and (3) at least one variable included in either the primary or secondary outcome should be concentrated on PA, DB, and sleep. The risk of bias was assessed based upon Version 2 of the Cochrane risk-of-tool for randomized trials (RoB2).

RESULTS: Seven studies were screened. Two studies focused on DB and sleep respectively, the remaining five studies included more diet modules than PA and sleep ones. PA was examined in four studies, which all reported a significant changes within the intervention group at the post-intervention, but only two studies found a significant group-by-time difference. Five of six studies that reported on DB outcomes indicated significant improvements compared with the control. Two studies evaluated sleep outcomes, one demonstrated significant improvements in sleep between intervention and control groups, while the other did not. The quality of the interventions was generally not high; therefore, these results should be interpreted with caution.

CONCLUSION: Studies reviewed either emphasized one variable (e.g., sleep or diet) or failed to balance the dosage of PA, diet, and sleep modules and consider the intervention sequence during the intervention period. It is recommended that high-quality, robust designed research studies to balance the intervention content and sequence are needed to deter- mine the effectiveness of mHealth interventions to support behavior change in Chinese preschoolers and target parents as an agent of behavioral change.
Original languageEnglish
Publication statusPublished - 4 Jul 2023
EventECSS Paris 2023 – the 28th Annual Congress of the European College of Sport Science - Paris, France
Duration: 4 Jul 20237 Jul 2023
https://www.ecss.mobi/DATA/CONGRESSES/PARIS_2023/DOCUMENTS/BOA_Paris_2023_Web.pdf

Conference

ConferenceECSS Paris 2023 – the 28th Annual Congress of the European College of Sport Science
Country/TerritoryFrance
CityParis
Period4/07/237/07/23
Internet address

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