iAmHealthy Parents First: A Televideo Parent and Child Obesity Program for Rural Families

iAmHealthy Parents First: A Televideo Parent and Child Obesity Program for Rural Families

The purpose of this study is to assess whether providing a parent-only group program before providing a parent and child group program works better than the parent and child group program alone.

The goal of this project is to determine if an adult intervention followed by a family-based program (iAmHealthy Parents First) will result in a larger percentage of weight loss in parents and children compared to solely a family-based program (iAmHealthy). Furthermore, the investigators aim to discover if administering iAmHealthy Parents First will improve dietary intake, physical activity, and weight-related quality of life among parents and children when compared to iAmHealthy. Parent/child dyads will be recruited from rural elementary schools, medical clinics, and organizations across Kansas and neighboring states.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Family lives in a rural area (city and/or county population <20,000) or as defined by RUCA codes, Urban Influence Codes, amount of agricultural income, or individual commuting patterns
• Child BMI%ile ≥ 85th and parent BMI 25-50 kg/m2
• Child in 1st-5th grade or 6-11 years of age
• Child and parent speak English
• Family is available at times intervention is offered

Exclusion Criteria:

• For parents: new MI, stroke or cancer diagnosis in past 6 months, recent bariatrics surgery (within 2 years) or planned within 1 year, pregnancy in last 6 months or planned within 1 year