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SAGE Publications, Global Health Promotion, 2(27), p. 63-73, 2019

DOI: 10.1177/1757975918813049

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¡Activate Ya! Co-learning about school-based tobacco prevention and physical activity promotion in secondary school students in Uruguay

This paper was not found in any repository, but could be made available legally by the author.
This paper was not found in any repository, but could be made available legally by the author.

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Abstract

Purpose: ¡Activate Ya! was a group-randomized controlled intervention trial aimed at developing and evaluating the impact of a school-based intervention on preventing cigarette smoking and promoting physical activity (PA) in secondary school students in Uruguay. Secondary aims were to evaluate the program’s impact on students’ smoking- and PA-related psychosocial risk and protective factors. Methods: Sixteen schools and n = 654 students participated in the study. The one-year intervention included a classroom-based curriculum, an afterschool program, activity breaks, and final showcase event. A self-administered questionnaire measured outcomes at three time points. Fixed effects regression models tested for differences in outcomes by study condition. Results: While positive intervention effects were found for selected psychosocial-related smoking outcomes, no impact on past-year smoking or smoking susceptibility was detected. Past 7-day PA, measured by the PAQ-C, was significantly higher among intervention school students overall ( p = .048) and for girls ( p = .03) at posttest, and intervention girls reported significantly higher athletic identity PA competence, friend and teacher PA support at posttest, and PA enjoyment at follow-up ( p < .05). Conclusion: The positive short-term effects of ¡Activate Ya! on PA and related outcomes for girls support the utility of school-based health promotion in Uruguay. Additional research is needed to determine the most effective strategies to prevent tobacco use among students and promote PA among boys in this setting.