'Schools for Health', a project of the Swiss Development and Cooperation (SDC) Agency, Rr. "Mihal Popi", 8185 Tirana, Albania.
Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Tirana, Bulevardi Zogu I, 1001 Tirana, Albania.
Health Promot Int. 2023 Aug 1;38(4). doi: 10.1093/heapro/daad083.
Digital applications can be effective tools for strengthening school-based health education programs as they can provide valuable health information to children through interactive videos, quizzes and games. We aimed at assessing the change in the prevalence of healthy behaviours among children exposed to digital applications (intervention) employed for promoting healthy behaviours. We conducted a cross-sectional study before the intervention in March 2022 including a representative sample of 1500 Albanian schoolchildren (≈54% girls) aged 12-15 years. In June 2022, after 4-month exposure to digital applications aimed at promoting healthy behaviours (intervention), we carried out a second cross-sectional study in the same sample of schoolchildren. In both survey rounds, an anonymous and structured self-administered questionnaire inquired children about a range of behavioural practices including nutrition, oral health, physical activity and hygiene practices. After the intervention, overall, there was evidence of a significant increase in the prevalence of all healthy behavioural practices measured: ~9% for breakfast consumption and/or environmental protection, 12% for toothbrushing, 14% for handwashing, 15% for leisure time physical exercise and 24% for adequate fruit and vegetable intake (all p < 0.001). Engagement in healthy behaviours only after the intervention was higher among rural children (from 18% for breakfast consumption to 37% for handwashing and/or adequate fruit and vegetable intake) and especially those pertinent to Roma/Egyptian communities (from 18% for breakfast consumption to 46% for adequate fruit and vegetable intake), except for engagement in safe environmental protection which was more prevalent among urban residents (28% vs. 15% among rural children) and ethnic Albanian children (24% vs. 13% among Roma/Egyptian children). Our findings from Albania indicate that digital applications can be useful for strengthening school-based health promotion programs.
数字应用程序可以成为加强学校健康教育计划的有效工具，因为它们可以通过互动视频、测验和游戏向儿童提供有价值的健康信息。我们旨在评估接触旨在促进健康行为的数字应用程序（干预）的儿童中健康行为的流行率变化。我们在 2022 年 3 月进行了一项干预前的横断面研究，纳入了 1500 名年龄在 12-15 岁的阿尔巴尼亚学龄儿童（≈54%为女孩）的代表性样本。2022 年 6 月，在接触旨在促进健康行为的数字应用程序（干预）4 个月后，我们在同一批学龄儿童中进行了第二次横断面研究。在两轮调查中，匿名和结构化的自我管理问卷询问了儿童一系列行为实践，包括营养、口腔健康、身体活动和卫生习惯。干预后，总体而言，所有衡量的健康行为实践的流行率均有显著增加：早餐消费和/或环境保护增加约 9%，刷牙增加 12%，洗手增加 14%，休闲时间体育锻炼增加 15%，水果和蔬菜摄入充足增加 24%（均 p < 0.001）。只有在干预后才参与健康行为的儿童中，农村儿童（从早餐消费的 18%增加到洗手和/或摄入足够水果和蔬菜的 37%），尤其是罗姆/埃及社区的儿童（从早餐消费的 18%增加到摄入足够水果和蔬菜的 46%），参与率更高，而安全环境保护的参与率在城市居民中更为普遍（28%比农村儿童中的 15%）和阿尔巴尼亚族裔儿童（24%比罗姆/埃及儿童中的 13%）。我们在阿尔巴尼亚的研究结果表明，数字应用程序可以为加强学校健康促进计划提供有用的支持。
