About the program

Healthy Dads, Healthy Kids supports fathers to improve their own and their children’s physical activity and dietary habits. Through education, skills-based sessions and role-modelling, the program aims to:

• improve physical movement skills
• increase child participation in sport
• reduce time on screens and sedentary behaviours
• prevent long-term health issues.

Program structure

The program is delivered to fathers and their children in 9 x 1.5-hour weekly sessions. Program sessions cover 4 key health topics:

• fundamental movement skills
• rough and tumble play
• health-related fitness
• fun and active household and backyard games.

These topics involve discussions focused on:

• weight management
• healthy eating
• strategies to enhance family life
• the influence of fathers and healthy fathering.

There are 2 dads only information sessions, and each session has an information component (separate for dads and kids) and practical component.

For more information visit the Healthy Dads, Health Kids website.

Evaluation and effectiveness

A randomised control trial (RCT) (Morgan et al. 2014) was conducted in Australia to evaluate the effectiveness of the Healthy Dads, Healthy Kids (HDHK) program. The RCT involved 93 fathers (47 intervention, 46 control) and 132 children.

Results showed that the HDHK program had a significant intervention effect on fathers’:

• weight
• BMI (Body Mass Index)
• waist circumference
• resting heart rate
• physical activity levels
• dietary intake.

There were no significant differences between control and intervention groups for blood pressure or sitting time. For children, intervention effects were found for adiposity and physical activity.

The successful recruitment of fathers and high attendance and retention rates supported the effectiveness of the HDHK intervention delivered in a community setting.

In addition to this RCT, there have been several evaluations conducted on the program including a dissemination trial (Morgan et al. 2019) and a RCT focused on dietary outcomes (Burrows et al. 2012). In the dissemination trial, the same positive intervention effects that were previously seen in the 2014 RCT were replicated and maintained at 12 month follow up when the program was delivered by trained facilitators. The RCT on dietary outcomes showed positive outcomes for reduced food portions (fathers) and reduced energy intake (children).

Here is a selection of published articles related to the HDHK program (for a more comprehensive list, please visit the HDHK website).

References

Burrows, T., Morgan, P. J., Lubans, D. R., Callister, R, Okely, T., Bray, J., & Collins, C. (2012). Dietary outcomes of the Healthy Dads Healthy Kids randomised controlled trial. Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition, 55(4), 408-411. DOI: 10.1097/MPG.0b013e318259aee6

Griffin, T., Sun. Y., Sidhu, M., Adab, P., Burgess, A., Collins, C., Daley, A., Entwistle, A., Frew, E., Hardy, P., Hurley, K., Jones, L., McGee, E., Pallan, M., Young, M., Morgan, P.J. & Jolly, K. (2019). Healthy Dads, Healthy Kids UK, a weight management programme for fathers: feasibility RCT, BJM Open, 9:e033534, doi: 10.1136/ bmjopen-2019-033534

Jolly, K., Griffin, T., Sidhu, M., Adab, P., Burgess, A., Collins, C., Daley, A., Entwistle, A., Frew, E., Hardy, P., Hurley, K., Jones, L., McGee, E., Pallan, M., Sun, Y., Young, M., & Morgan, P. J. (2020) A weight management programme for fathers of children aged 4–11 years: cultural adaptation and the Healthy Dads, Healthy Kids UK feasibility RCT, Public Health Research, 8(2), doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2019-033534

MacDonald, J., Towney, N., Butler, K., Myles, Y., Barclay, B., Ashton, L., Morgan, P. (In Press). What does it mean to be an Aboriginal father living on Darkinjung Country? Yarning with Aboriginal fathers and father-figures on the Central Coast of NSW, Australia. AlterNative

Morgan, P.J., Collins, C.E., Plotnikoff, R.C., Callister, R., Burrows, T., Fletcher, R., Okely, A.D., Young, M.D., Miller, A., Lloyd, A. B., Cook, A.T., Cruickshank, J., Saunders, K.L., & Lubans, D. R. (2014). The ‘Healthy Dads, Healthy Kids’ community randomized controlled trial: a community-based healthy lifestyle program for fathers and their children. Preventative Medicine 61(2014), 90-99. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ypmed.2013.12.019

Morgan, P.J., Collins, C.E., Lubans, D.R., Callister, R., Lloyd, A.B., Plotnikoff, R., Burrows, T.L., Barnes, A.T., Pollock, E.R., Fletcher, R., Okely, A.D., Handley, S., & Young, M.D. (2019). Twelve-month outcomes of a father-child lifestyle intervention delivered by trained local facilitators in under-served communities: The Healthy Dads Healthy Kids dissemination trial, Translational Behavioural Medicine, 9(3), 560-569, doi.org/10.1093/tbm/ibz031