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Early intervention plan to address obesity crisis
Blood pressure and physical activity checks in primary schools are part of a strategy to ‘shift the dial’ on rising obesity rates.
A coordinated strategy will embed blood pressure checks at primary schools in efforts to reduce the risk of obesity and heart disease.
A 10-year, multifaceted plan is hoped to improve long-term wellbeing and address rising obesity trends among children.
Led by the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI) in partnership with universities and other research centres around Australia, the GenHEART strategy will involve four trials, focusing on heart health, diet, exercise and sleep. Each aims to answer a key prevention question:
- GenPRESSURE – Can blood pressure checks at primary school reduce the risk of stroke and heart disease?
- GenWEIGHT – Can weight-loss drugs for parents with obesity reshape a household’s food habits, helping to break intergenerational cycles of obesity?
- GenMOVE – Can changing school physical activities to focus on strength and lean-mass development lead to better heart health?
- GenSLEEP – Can bringing a child’s bedtime forward by 30 minutes reduce unhealthy weight gain and improve mental health?
As
recent findings predict that one in six children and adolescents worldwide will be obese by 2050, the MCRI research team says the project is ‘a once-in-a-generation opportunity to finally shift the dial on rising obesity rates’.
‘Good heart health in childhood is crucial to reducing the risk of chronic disease across a person’s lifetime,’ MCRI Group Leader Professor Melissa Wake said.
‘We know the risk factors underlying cardiometabolic diseases such as unhealthy weight gain, high blood pressure, low physical activity and poor sleep often begin in the primary school years.
‘Sadly, once established, these patterns are hard to reverse.’
Professor Wake said many prevention programs are short-term, ‘narrowly focused’ and ‘fail to make a difference’. However, GenHEART is designed to address a range of issues simultaneously via ‘a suite of coordinated prevention trials’ at a whole-population scale.
‘The four trials will be carefully sequenced across childhood,’ Professor Wake said. ‘This approach allows interventions to be introduced at developmentally appropriate stages, while insights from earlier trials inform those that follow.
‘While all interventions are designed to be scalable and feasible at a population level, they extend beyond child-focused programs. This approach reflects the many factors that shape lifelong heart health.’
In Australia, cardiovascular disease remains
one of the most prevalent health conditions, impacting one in six people and accounting for approximately 24% of all deaths.
GenHEART’s four trials will be informed by data from
Generation Australia, which combines two longitudinal child and family cohort studies:
GenV which tracks the health of almost 125,000 children and their families, and
ORIGINS which tracks 10,000 children and their families.
Associate Professor Kylie Vuon is a GP based in the Department of General Practice and Primary Care at the University of Melbourne, and an investigator on the GenPRESSURE element of the new project.
She told
newsGP that GPs remain central to improving health outcomes, given their role in prevention and early intervention.
‘GP expertise is crucial in supporting children hypertension,’ she said.
‘We will be co-designing management flowcharts with GPs and families to ensure acceptability, feasibility and integration with real-world workflows.
‘This project will generate evidence on school-based blood pressure screening. It connects the school, general practice and tertiary care, placing the child and their families in the centre.’
Associate Professor Vuon said childhood hypertension is a ‘major health issue’ linked with higher cardiovascular risk in adolescence and adulthood, with obesity a
notable factor contributing to the increasing prevalence of hypertension in this population.
It is
estimated that high blood pressure affects up to 14% of children and adolescents globally, and rates rose by 75% from 2000 to 2015.
While the primary school blood pressure checks under GenPRESSURE will be carried out by a stand-alone screening team attached to the trial, referrals will be made to GPs for children with high blood pressure, with referral and management pathways.
‘This mimics how universal screening programs are typically delivered in Australia,’ Associate Professor Vuon said.
‘For example, managed as a quality-controlled dedicated program, such as BreastScreen and newborn hearing tests, with skilled practitioners like GPs or audiologists managing, triaging or supporting those in whom a clinical problem is detected.’
Once the data is collated across the four focus trials, it is expected to be translated into general practice as part of routine lifestyle assessments.
The RACGP is a translation partner for the GenV Intervention Hub, and Associate Professor Vuon says it will be involved in shaping the translation approach for each trial individually and as a whole.
‘We will be seeking general practice and primary care input throughout the project to ensure this model meets their needs,’ she said.
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blood pressure children’s health diet early intervention heart health hypertension lifestyle obesity preventive health
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