Design, development, and achievements of a youth-led nutrition and physical activity intervention in a pacific community in New Zealand

Adolescent overweight/obesity is a global public health concern (1) and affects one third of New Zealand adolescents (2). Although numerous obesity prevention interventions have been conducted in school settings (3, 4, 5, 6, 7), their findings have been modest at best. Youth participation in partnership with adults is a promising strategy to address important issues for adolescents and their communities (8, 9). Prioritizing youth participation in developing program activities may result in more acceptable and “cooler” interventions. To our knowledge, no previous interventions have incorporated a youth participation model as a major intervention for school-based obesity prevention. This article describes the process and achievements of developing student health councils for school-based nutrition and activity interventions.