Effects of A Diet Control Program Among Overweight Prathomsuksa 5-6 Students*

Abstract

This quasi-experimental study aimed to investigate the effects of health education programs and
applied the theories of self-efficacy, social support, and group process in modifying food consumption
behaviors of Prathomsuksa 5-6 students with overweight problems. Thirty students studying in schools
under the supervision of the Office of Education, Region 1, Nonthaburi, 30 students were placed in the
experimental group and another 30 were in the control group. The study period was eight weeks.
Changes were assessed by questionnaires, which were launched to collect data in two phases: before
the experiment and after the experiment. Differences of average scores between groups and within each
group were analyzed by Paired Samples t - test, and Independent t – test.
The results showed that at the end of the experiment, there were changes in the experimental
group in terms of knowledge of nutrition and obesity. The level of self-efficacy in this group was higher
than before the experiment, and was higher than the control group with statistical significance (p <0.001).
There were also changes in terms of the outcome expectation of diet control for weight control. Positive
food consumption behaviors of the experimental group increased at a higher level than before the
experiment, and were higher than those of the control group with statistical significance (p <0.05).
This research indicated that the application of the diet control program through the provision of
knowledge, the establishment of self-efficacy, along with the provision of social support from researchers,
teachers, peers, and parents contributed to better food consumption behaviors for weight control. This
program could also be integrated as a part of academic courses providing students with the knowledge
about how to adjust food consumption behaviors to achieve appropriate patterns of weight control.