Topic: Obesity, Nutrition/Diet, Physical Activity
Target Population: Policymakers, Providers
Sector: Community-Based
This program is for providers of early childhood education and child care services and is intended to impact providers and preschool children.
Nutrition and Physical Activity Self-Assessment for Child Care (NAP SACC), a community-based program, is designed to improve child care policies and environments related to nutrition and physical activity.
The effects of the NAP SACC program were assessed in child care centers in North Carolina in a randomized controlled trial (RCT). From the beginning to the end of the 6-month intervention, participating child care centers had modest improvements in observed nutrition policies and environments; whereas, there were no improvements in comparison child care centers. Significant improvements in physical activity policies and environments were not observed. A separate RCT was conducted in child care centers in North Carolina, Connecticut, and California. At the end of the 7-month intervention, significant increases in providers’ and parents’ knowledge of nutrition and physical activity, and center-level improvements to physical activity and nutrition policies were found in intervention child care centers when compared to control centers.
The NAP SACC program is designed to improve nutrition/diet and increase physical activity by making child care policies and environments more aligned with best practices in these areas. The program is facilitated by Child Care Health Consultants (CCHCs) or other health professionals. Using a self-assessment, child care center directors rate their child care's nutrition- and physical activity-related policies and environments pertaining to 14 key areas: fruits and vegetables; meats, fats, and grains; beverages; menus and variety; feeding practices; foods offered outside of regular meals and snacks; supporting healthy eating; nutrition education for staff, children, and parents; nutrition policy; active play and inactive time; play environment; supporting physical activity; physical activity education for staff, children, and parents; and physical activity policy.
Based on results from the assessment, CCHCs and child care center directors develop and implement an action plan to improve at least one nutrition, one physical activity, and one additional factor. Concurrently, CCHCs deliver five continuing education workshops to child care center staff: Childhood Obesity, Nutrition for Young Children, Physical Activity for Young children, Personal Health and Wellness for Staff, and Working with Families to Promote Healthy Weight Behaviors. The program concludes with a re-assessment to track progress. The process may be repeated as desired to foster continuous improvements.
Go NAP SACC provides interactive online tools for child care centers and family child care homes.
NAP SACC was created in 2002 by a team of child obesity researchers at University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. The program was pilot tested in 2003 followed by a larger randomized controlled trial conducted from 2005 to 2006. The program has been adopoted by child care centers in over 30 states and internationally.
Go NAPSACC online provides trainings for child care center staff around best practices for implementing new practices and policies within child care centers Trainings show providers how their practices improve children’s health, and offer clear and practical advice for improving practices in their own programs. The program also offers technical assistance consultants to provide support.
Considerations for implementing this program include acquiring buy-in from child care directors and staff; acquiring CCHCs or other health professionals to consult with child care center directors; and securing resources, such as time and funding, to implement environmental and policy changes.
The Clearinghouse can help address these considerations. Please call 1-877-382-9185 or email Clearinghouse@psu.edu
If you are interested in implementing the NAP SACC program, the Clearinghouse is interested in helping you!
Please call 1-877-382-9185 or email Clearinghouse@psu.edu
Consultants will need about 1.5 hours per week for 6 months to consult with the director and staff of each center they oversee. Additional time will be required for directors and staff to implement program-related improvements to their policy and environment.
Program materials are available for free online https://gonapsacc.org/self-assessment-materials. The cost of other materials will depend on the number of consultants and facilities that participate in the program. Each consultant will need a toolkit and copies. Copies will cost about $30, and a binder for the toolkit information will cost about $5. Other costs will vary and could include printing handouts for continuing education workshops, printing brochures and materials for parents, purchasing a laptop computer and LCD projector for workshop presentations, acquiring incentives for child care facilities (e.g., gift cards for classroom supplies, balls, low-cost items to promote physical activity), and distributing reimbursement for the miles consultants drive to child care facilities.
To move the NAP SACC program to the Promising category on the Clearinghouse Continuum of Evidence, at least one evaluation should be performed demonstrating positive effects lasting at least six months from program completion.
The Clearinghouse can help you develop an evaluation plan to ensure the program components are meeting your goals. Please call 1-877-382-9185 or email Clearinghouse@psu.edu
Contact the Clearinghouse with any questions regarding this program.
Phone: 1-877-382-9185 Email: Clearinghouse@psu.edu
You may also contact NAPSACC by email at gonapsacc@unc.edu or visit https://gonapsacc.org/contact-us
Alkon, A., Crowley, A. A., Benjamin Neelon, S. E., Hill, S., Pan, Y., Nguyen, V., Rose, R., … Kotch, J. B. (2014). Nutrition and physical activity randomized controlled trial in child care centers improves knowledge, policies, and children’s body mass index. BMC Public Health, 14, 215-227. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-14-215
Ward, D. S., Benjamin, S. E., Ammerman, A. S., Ball, S. C., Neelon, B. H., & Bangdiwala, S. I. (2008). Nutrition and physical activity in child care: Results from an environmental intervention. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 35(4), 352-356. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2008.06.030
Ward, D. S., Vaughn, A. E., Mazzucca, S. & Burney, R. (2017). Translating a child care based intervention for online delivery: Development and randomized pilot study of GO NAPSACC. BMC Public Health, 17, 891-904. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-017-4898-z
Ammerman, A., Ward, D. S., Benjamin, S. E., Ball, S. C., Sommers, J., Malloy, M., & Doods, J. (2007). An intervention to promote healthy weight: Nutrition and physical activity self-assessment for child care (NAP SACC) theory and design. Preventing Chronic Disease, 4(3), A67-A78.
Benjamin, S. E., Ammerman, A., Sommers, J., Dodds, J., Neelon, B., & Ward, D. S. (2007). Nutrition and physical activity self-assessment for child care (NAP SACC): Results from a pilot intervention. Journal of Nutrition Education & Behavior, 39(3), 142-149. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jneb.2006.08.027
