Primary Submission Category: Infants/children/youth
The Impact of Year Round School (YRS) Calendars on Childhood Obesity in Texas
Authors: Nomita Bajwa,
Presenting Author: Nomita Bajwa*
Introduction: Childhood obesity is a pressing public health issue associated with higher lifetime risks of mortality, morbidity, and a reduced quality of life. Texas consistently ranks in the bottom among the high rates of childhood and adulthood obesity. School environments play a significant role in the prevention of childhood obesity; however, school based health promotion initiatives focused on physical activity and nutrition have not shown sustained benefits. Traditional school schedule with long summer breaks
have been associated with accelerated weight gain in at-risk populations reversing the benefits of interventions. Year-round school(YRS) calendars which have shorter more frequent breaks, may provide a protective effect on weight status, but data is limited due to the small percentage of schools following a YRS calendar. Texas, with over 5 million enrolled students in over 9500 campuses, allows for both traditional and YRS calendars and provides a unique opportunity to address this gap in the literature.
Objective: This study examined the association between school calendars and weight-related health risk among Texas public school students.
Methods: We are conducting a cross-sectional secondary analysis of publicly available datasets from the 2022-23 school year. Logistic regression will be used to explore the association between school calendars and weight-related health risk (no risk, some risk and high risk) among 7th grade students attending public schools in Texas.
Results: The preliminary analysis indicates that 580 school campus have a 7th grade class, with 95 YRS campuses. A detailed analysis will examine how socio-economic and other school-related characteristics influence the association between school calendar type and weight-related health risk.
Conclusion:This study provides insights into how school calendars are associated with weight related risk factors and how it might impact decision making around school schedules.