Validación de material educativo del programa “Niñ@s en Movimiento” para el tratamiento de la obesidad infantil

Objective: To validate the content of the first booklet “Niñ@s en Movimiento” (designed in Spain), in the Colombian setting, targeting parents or caretakers, and overweight or obese children, which is available free online. Methodology: Qualitative research. After a selection process, 14 overweight children and their parents or caretakers were selected to participate. The children were students at the Colegio Básico “Camino de Paz" School in Medellin. To classify anthropometric data, the study used the World Health Organization program. To validate the booklet, a question guideline was drawn up and focus groups were held. The criteria used included attraction, comprehension, identification, acceptance and induction to action. Data were analyzed using the SPSS® software Version 21.0, and a data analysis protocol. Results: In the section “the importance of breakfast”, in the educational material, some parents or caretakers stated that it is necessary to indicate an adequate way to prepare food, how to serve it and the amounts that they should their children, which is not clear in the booklet. Regarding the children, in the sections “my breakfasts” and “food classification”, there were technical words that complicated comprehension. Furthermore, when talking about food classification, there are foods they have not seen nor eaten. In the parent or caretaker criteria evaluation, comprehension was poorly scored, as some of the terms were not clear. The children also ranked negatively this criterion. Vocabulary was difficult to understand because it had a foreign context. Conclusions: Breakfast, although an established habit, can improve; nevertheless, the guidelines of the booklet would have to be adapted to local language and food culture so that these recommendations may improve the applicability of this educational resource.