School nurses’ nursing interventions in the prevention of childhood obesity

Abstract

There is an urgency to control childhood obesity before adulthood because its comorbidities have become a major challenge globally to nursing hence nurses are over-burdened in their work. As a result, School-based childhood obesity prevention programmes have emerged to improve child physical activity, to eradicate passive lifestyle, poor nourishment and escalating childhood obesity rates. Various systematic reviews have confirmed that school-based obesity prevention interventions can be successful, however few studies have conducted how the nursing efforts are effective when nurses educate, support and work directly fighting against childhood obesity. The aim of this review was to explore school nurses’ interventions in the prevention of pediatric obesity. The purpose was to avail the most current information on childhood obesity prevention to the school nurses and the future nursing students. This was intended to collect all the valid information in one publication for easier research for those in need of the information. The study was implemented as a literature review. The data was gathered from the article databases of CINAHL, EBSCOhost and PubMed and in the campus’ library and in the publication accounts of units of nursing science of Finnish higher learning institutions. The major generated themes were; Improved Quality of Life, social intervention, behavioral, environmental and cultural interventions. All the studies suggested further research because these strategies may not be successful in all contexts as various settings maybe based on the countries’ policies as well and not all schools have school nurses neither nursing schools in their environs.