The project will assess family-based treatment models targeting childhood obesity. The study will explore the most effective behavioral approaches to reduce pediatric obesity so that providers and families can better address this issue.

The study will compare two approaches to determine which is more effective. One model is the staged treatment approach, also called the enhanced standard of care (eSOC). This involves prevention counseling and assessment by the primary care provider. The second model combines eSOC with family-based treatment (FBT), which also addresses the needs of caregivers so they can better support their children’s treatment.

The eSOC approach provides families with counseling on nutrition and physical activity, as well as medical care for obesity and related conditions. If the standard eSOC plan does not achieve the desired results, families who need more support can try a more intensive, tailored strategy after 3-6 months. The American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Medical Association recommends eSOC as the best care for children with obesity.

The family-based treatment approach, on the other hand, aligns with the recommendation from the US Preventive Services Task Force that clinicians should offer a comprehensive behavioral intervention to improve children’s weight status. It encourages parents to become active participants in the treatment, aiming to create lasting habit change while teaching positive parenting techniques. This approach has been shown to reduce children’s percent overweight by almost 20 percent, with the average parent also losing about 20 pounds.

We are happy to see the Washington University study will have a special focus on minority children, families insured by Medicaid, and sex differences, as we currently face an urgent need for insight into family-based weight management among patient subgroups.

Another goal of the project is to determine if patients who receive the eSOC plus FBT approach will experience improvements in psychosocial factors like quality of life and coping with bullying compared with patients who receive eSOC alone.

Researchers at Washington University will lead the project, working with researchers from the University of Rochester Medical Center, the Pennington Biomedical Research Center at Louisiana State University, and the American Academy of Pediatrics Institute for Healthy Childhood Weight. Healthcare providers will administer the treatment program in primary-care settings in the St. Louis area, Louisiana, and upstate New York.

Today’s high rates of childhood obesity call for immediate action. Childhood obesity quadruples the risk of developing type 2 diabetes before age 25. Caregivers may question what approach is right for their family, especially if a comprehensive behavioral intervention demands greater time and effort. We are hopeful that the project will help families address this uncertainty and make informed decisions about which treatment is right for them.