Flores R
School of Medicine, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA, USA.
Public Health Rep. 1995 Mar-Apr;110(2):189-93.
Cardiovascular disease begins early in life but might be prevented or delayed by primary prevention programs designed for children and adolescents. Regular physical activity is an important part of primary prevention programs, and school physical education programs have potential for the promotion of regular physical activity. Cardiovascular disease is the major cause of death among Hispanics and African Americans in the United States. Low levels of fitness and increased body mass index are common in African American and Hispanic adolescents. Increased physical activity and the adoption of healthy eating habits would increase fitness and reduce body mass index among these adolescents. The purpose of the study was to undertake a small-scale controlled trial to determine if Dance for Health, an intervention program designed to provide an enjoyable aerobic program for African American and Hispanic adolescents, has a significant effect on improving aerobic capacity, helping students maintain or decrease weight, and on improving attitudes toward physical activity and physical fitness. In the first year of the program (1990-91), approximately 110 boys and girls ages 10-13 years participated in an aerobic dance pilot program three times per week for 12 weeks. Dance for Health was revised and continued in the 1992-93 school year with seventh grade students and an added culturally sensitive health curriculum. Forty-three students were randomized to Dance for Health and 38 to usual physical activity. Those in the intervention class received a health education curriculum twice a week and a dance oriented physical education class three times a week. The usual physical activity consisted mostly of playground activities. Students in the intervention had a significantly greater lowering in body mass index and resting heart rate than students in regular physical activity.
心血管疾病在生命早期就开始出现，但通过为儿童和青少年设计的一级预防项目有可能预防或延缓其发生。规律的体育活动是一级预防项目的重要组成部分，而学校体育课程有促进规律体育活动的潜力。在美国，心血管疾病是西班牙裔和非裔美国人的主要死因。非裔美国人和西班牙裔青少年普遍存在体能水平低和体重指数增加的情况。增加体育活动并养成健康的饮食习惯将提高这些青少年的体能并降低体重指数。该研究的目的是进行一项小规模对照试验，以确定“健康舞蹈”（一项旨在为非裔美国人和西班牙裔青少年提供有趣有氧项目的干预项目）是否对提高有氧能力、帮助学生维持体重或减轻体重以及改善对体育活动和体能的态度有显著效果。在该项目的第一年（1990 - 1991年），约110名10 - 13岁的男孩和女孩每周参加三次有氧舞蹈试点项目，为期12周。“健康舞蹈”在1992 - 1993学年进行了修订并继续实施，对象为七年级学生，并增加了具有文化敏感性的健康课程。43名学生被随机分配到“健康舞蹈”组，38名学生进行常规体育活动。干预组的学生每周接受两次健康教育课程，每周参加三次以舞蹈为主的体育课。常规体育活动主要是操场活动。与进行常规体育活动的学生相比，干预组学生的体重指数和静息心率显著降低。
