Elsevier

Behavior Therapy

Volume 16, Issue 2, March 1985, Pages 205-212
Behavior Therapy

Effects of family-based behavioral treatment on obese 5-to-8-year-old children*

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0005-7894(85)80046-0Get rights and content

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of family-based treatment for childhood obesity for 5-to-8-year-old children. Nineteen obese 5-to 8-year-old girls were randomly assigned to one of two treatments: a behaviorally oriented program which emphasized parent management, and a control group which provided equal education and attention, but not behavioral principles. The treatment group showed better weight loss and relative weight changes than the control group at the 8 and 12 month observations. These results show that the family-based treatment developed for 8-to-12-year-olds can be generalized to 5-to-8-year-old children.

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This research was supported in part by Grant HD 16411 from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. Appreciation is expressed to Anthony Goreczny, Colleen McGowan, Diana Block, Janine Scotti, Janet Johnston, Kathy Nicolas, and especially Alice Valoski for assisting in the treatment, and to Dr. Creek and the staff at Falk School for providing space for the summer camp.

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