# “Promoting Nutrition and Physical Activity in Family Child Care.”

> **NIH NIH R01** · JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY · 2020 · $534,094

## Abstract

Since the 1970s, the prevalence of obesity in children ages 2 to 5 has approximately tripled. Millions of
American children in that age group spend substantial time each week in child care, and factors related to
obesity are not optimal in those settings. Therefore, it is important to understand how policies and practices in
child care settings influence factors that may be related to obesity. In South Carolina (SC), a state with high
rates of obesity among all population groups, the Department of Social Services plans to implement new
healthy eating and physical activity regulatory standards that govern family child care homes that participate in
the state's ABC Child Care program. The program includes 368 family child care homes serving approximately
3,000 children from low-income families; 65% of children are from minority racial or ethnic backgrounds. The
standards target meals and snacks served to children and the amount and level of physical activity provided to
children in care. The new regulatory standards will be announced to family child care homes shortly. This
proposed study will evaluate the implementation and effects of South Carolina's new regulatory standards,
which are designed to improve the quality of their diets and increase children's physical activity levels while
they are in care. Data will be collected on a sample of 360 children attending 120 family child care homes in
South Carolina before and at two time points after the standards take effect. The ABC Child Care program will
announce the new standards shortly, and they will become mandatory in October of 2017. The launch of new
standards in South Carolina provides a narrow time window and a unique opportunity to study the effects of a
key policy change—markedly enhanced state regulatory standards for physical activity and quality of food*
served—on physical activity levels and diet of children attending family child care homes. Results from this
study will provide new information on state policy change and its influence on healthy eating and physical
activity levels of children in family child care homes. Policy-based obesity prevention efforts have the potential
to impact and improve the health of large numbers of children attending family-based child care in South
Carolina and across the country.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9930634
- **Project number:** 5R01HD093784-04
- **Recipient organization:** JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Sara Elizabeth Benjamin-Neelon
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $534,094
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-08-01 → 2023-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9930634

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9930634, “Promoting Nutrition and Physical Activity in Family Child Care.” (5R01HD093784-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9930634. Licensed CC0.

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