Reconstructing Schoolyards With Greenery to Increase Schoolchildren's Physical Activity and Mitigate Climate Changes

NCT05865782 | Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: The Schoolyard project
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 3,600
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

By reconstructing schoolyards with greenery, physical activity levels among children can be increased at the population level and also mitigate health and environmental risks resulting from rising climate changes in urban areas. The overarching purpose of the proposed project is to: i. increase physical activity levels among school-aged children, independent of socioeconomic factors, and thus affect short- and long-term health outcomes on a population level ii. establish an evidence-based bottom-up approach for schoolyard reconstructions iii. evaluate the cost-effectiveness of schoolyard reconstructions with greening on health outcomes and its environmental impact

Conditions

Physical Inactivity; Environmental Exposure; Mental Health Wellness 1

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Change in physical activity levels in children

  Physical activity levels in terms of daily minutes in moderate to vigorous physical activity, total physical activity and daily steps measured objectively by Actigraph GT3X+ accelerometers

  12 months change from baseline (in May before schoolyard reconstruction) to 1-year follow-up (in May 1 year later) in physical activity levels

Secondary Outcomes (11)

• Change in musculoskeletal fitness in children

  12 months change from baseline (in May before schoolyard reconstruction) to 1-year follow-up (in May 1 year later) in musculoskeletal fitness (handgrip strength)

• Change in weight in children

  12 months change from baseline (in May before schoolyard reconstruction) to 1-year follow-up (in May 1 year later) in weight

• Change in height in children

  12 months change from baseline (in May before schoolyard reconstruction) to 1-year follow-up (in May 1 year later) in height

• Change in blood pressure in children

  12 months change from baseline (in May before schoolyard reconstruction) to 1-year follow-up (in May 1 year later) in blood pressure

• Change in mental health in children

  12 months change from baseline (in May before schoolyard reconstruction) to 1-year follow-up (in May 1 year later) in mental health

Study Arms (1)

Schoolyard reconstruction

EXPERIMENTAL

Schools undertaking schoolyard reconstruction will act as both control and intervention schools. Each year, a cross-sectional sample of 2nd and 5th grade children will be measured in all participating schools.

Behavioral: Schoolyard reconstruction

Interventions

Schoolyard reconstruction BEHAVIORAL

The current study will be designed as a quasi-experimental stepped-wedge intervention where schools undertaking schoolyard reconstruction will act as both control and intervention schools. By using the stepped-wedge study design, with internal control schools, will enable the control for the seasonal variation in children's physical activity levels and for the age-related decline in physical activity throughout childhood. That is, without control schools we would be unable to attribute a change in physical activity to the reconstruction of the schoolyards - as any difference in physical activity before and after the schoolyard reconstruction in the intervention group could be explained by the natural change in physical activity over time.

Schoolyard reconstruction

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 8 Years - 13 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Child (0-17)

You may qualify if:

• On school level:
• School selected for schoolyard reconstruction by the City of Stockholm
• On individual level (schoolchildren):
• Enrolled in participating school
• years old at the time of study start
• In 2nd or 5th grade
• Parents signed informed consent

You may not qualify if:

• On school level:
• School not selected for schoolyard reconstruction by the City of Stockholm
• On individual level (schoolchildren):
• Not enrolled in participating school
• Outside 8-13 years old age range and/or not in 2nd or 5th grade
• Parents declined informed consent

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Karolinska Institutet: lead
• The City of Stockholm: collaborator
• Cancerfonden: collaborator
• Arwidssonstiftelsen: collaborator

Study Sites (1)

Karolinska Institutet

Stockholm, 113 65, Sweden

RECRUITING

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Sedentary Behavior

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Behavior

Study Officials

• Daniel Berglind, PhD

  Karolinska Institutet

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Daniel Berglind, PhD

CONTACT

+46703644797; daniel.berglind@ki.se

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: PREVENTION
• Intervention Model: SEQUENTIAL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Associate Professor

Model Details: Study design The current study will be designed as a quasi-experimental stepped-wedge intervention where schools undertaking schoolyard reconstruction will act as both control and intervention schools. Five schools will yearly receive the intervention (schoolyard reconstruction) at 4 different time points (during the summer breaks in 2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026) and the schools not receiving the intervention the specific year will act as control schools. The units where the proposed outcomes will be observed will be 2nd and 5th grade children (individual level) in the participating schools. Each year, a cross-sectional sample of 2nd and 5th grade children will be measured in all participating schools.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: March 29, 2023
• First Posted: May 19, 2023
• Study Start: May 22, 2024
• Primary Completion (Estimated): May 30, 2027
• Study Completion (Estimated): November 30, 2027
• Last Updated: June 20, 2024

Record last verified: 2024-05

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

SE (1)