Exploring Health Behaviors and Health Outcomes of Third Graders in Appalachia, Ohio: Does School Location Matter?
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Date
2015-05
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The Ohio State University
Abstract
The number of overweight children in America has continued to increase over the past three decades, and certain subgroups are at even higher risk. This study examines one of these subgroups in particular, children living in rural Appalachia, Ohio. The Appalachian areas report fewer normal or underweight children and more overweight and obese children with some estimates being double the national average. The goal of this study is tri-fold, to compare behavioral, theoretical, and health outcomes of third grade children residing in Appalachia, Ohio by school location. The behavioral outcomes of interest are dietary patterns and daily physical activity. The health outcomes of interest are BMI, systolic blood pressure, and diastolic blood pressure. A secondary goal is to explore children’s attitudes and perceived autonomy support and behavioral capacity for physical activity and dietary behaviors. This project is a secondary data analysis of a convenience sample from a study conducted from 2010-2012. The target population was third grade students in low-income counties from the Appalachian region of Ohio. The sample size was 90. Two groups were created: rural and city. Descriptive and inferential statistics were conducted. Difference between the behavioral, theoretical, and health outcomes based on school location was calculated. Independent t-tests were conducted for each variable of interest. Results indicate that mean systolic blood pressure was the only significant finding at the p=.05 level. The children residing in the rural area had a higher blood pressure. There was not a difference in BMI or other variables of interest. Although not definitive, broad contextual factors, such as location, may be related to important child health outcomes.
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Keywords
obesity, childhood obesity