“THE EFFECTIVENESS OF AEROBIC EXERCISE ON OBESE AND OVERWEIGHT CHILDREN: A QUASI EXPERIMENTAL STUDY”

Abstract

Background: Childhood obesity has become an epidemic in the recent years. Reports suggest that children suffering from obesity are predisposed to obesity in adulthood as well the many related comorbidities like hypertension, diabetes, etc. Therefore, it is necessary to develop programs to curb obesity early on. Aim: To study the effectiveness of aerobic exercise on obese and overweight children Methodology: A quasi-experimental study carried out at two schools in Kolhapur, Maharashtra (n=30, control and experimental each). A pilot study was first carried out in two schools (n=8), followed by the main study. Post discussions with the experts in the field, a questionnaire tool was developed and validated. Overweight and obese adolescents were included in the study. Anthropometric parameters like height, weight, body mass Index were recorded. and aerobic exercise intervention was provided for a month by a trained instructor. After one-month anthropometric measurements were taken again. Difference between the parameters were calculated by Wilcoxon signed rank test. P-value of <0.05 was considered as significant. Results: There was a significant reduction in the weight (P=9.14e-07) , BMI (P= 1.805e-06) and waist to hip ratio (P=0.0005) in the experimental group as opposed to control group where no difference was observed. Conclusion: Aerobic exercise has a significant effect on the reduction of weight in obese and overweight adolescents and should be considered in schools and at community levels