Development of a conceptual model for interpretation of monitoring indicators of childhood obesity prevention from the italian National Prevention Plan

BACKGROUND: the Italian National Prevention Plan (PNP) posed the standard to be achieved by Regions for the prevention of obesity in childhood and adolescence. The PNP also set up a monitoring system to assess the impact of im-plemented policies. OBJECTIVES: to develop a conceptual model to facilitate interpretation of variation in outcome indicators. METHODS: after a systematic review, the DPSEEA («Driving forces», «Pressures», «State», «Exposure», «Effect», «Ac-tions!) was identified as the more appropriate framework to assess the results of preventive policies. Factors for each component of the framework were identified and indicators that allow measuring the changing of each of these factors were defined. RESULTS: the included «driving forces» were related to the profit-led food industry, to the nutrition environment at school, and to household-level factors. Among the «pres-sures», parenting behaviours, food provided by school can-teens, sociocultural factors, social context, physical activity (PA), opportunities at school or after-school were included. In the State, the high consumption of processed food, the large quantities of high-calorie food easy available, the consumption of carbonated and sugar-sweetened beverages, the reduced social function of mealtimes in families, the early cessation of breastfeeding, the reduction of outdoors activity, active transportation, and PA at school for children were identified. The «exposure» factors were the reduced opportunities of doing PA and the over-consumption of calories that influence the «effect», described as the prevalence of children and adolescents affected by obesity. CONCLUSIONS: through the DPSEEA, a conceptual model was set up; it allows to place in the causal chain the «ac-tions» and the mechanisms through which these actions should impact on the «exposure» (PA and over-consumption of calories), making the rationale of process and impact indicators explicit.