• Hannes Hrafnkelsson, Kristjan Th Magnusson, Inga Thorsdottir, Erlingur Johannsson, and Emil L Sigurdsson.
• Department of Family Medicine, University of Iceland , Reykjavik , Iceland.
• Scand J Prim Health Care. 2014 Dec 1; 32 (4): 149155149-55.

ObjectiveTo assess the effectiveness of a two-year school-based intervention, consisting of integrated and replicable physical activity and nutritional education on weight, fat percentage, cardiovascular risk factors, and blood pressure.Design And SettingSix elementary schools in Reykjavik were randomly assigned to be either intervention (n = 3) or control (n = 3) schools. Seven-year-old children in the second grade in these schools were invited to participate (n = 321); 268 (83%) underwent some or all of the measurements. These 286 children were followed up for two years.InterventionChildren in intervention schools participated in an integrated and replicable physical activity programme, increasing to approximately 60 minutes of physical activity during school in the second year of intervention. Furthermore, they received special information about nutrition, and parents, teachers, and school food service staff were all involved in the intervention. Subjects. 321seven-year-old schoolchildren.Main Outcome MeasuresBlood pressure, obesity, percentage of body fat, lipid profile, fasting insulin.ResultsChildren in the intervention group had a 2.3 mmHg increase in systolic blood pressure (SBP) and a 2.9 mmHg increase in diastolic blood pressure (DBP) over the two-year intervention period, while children in the control group increased SBP by 6.7 mmHg and DPB by 8.4 mmHg. These changes were not statistically significant. Furthermore there were no significant changes in percentage body fat, lipid profile, or fasting insulin between the intervention and control schools.ConclusionA two-year school-based intervention with increased physical activity and healthy diet did not have a significant effect on common cardiovascular risk factors.

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