Principal Investigator: Nan Zeng, Research Assistant Professor, Prevention and Population Sciences, Department of Pediatrics
Children diagnosed with a FASD may demonstrate a wide range of deficits, including physical, cognitive, behavioral, and psychosocial problems that can impact their ability to function in society. Therefore, intervention programs aim to promote health in this population is warranted. One intervention strategy that may be promising for improving multiple areas of the lives of individuals with a FASD is physical activity (PA). Aside from the general health benefits of an active lifestyle (e.g., cardiovascular benefits), PA can also improve various aspects of cognitive function, notably executive function, and appears to be effective across the life span. Today’s children are living in the age of technology, where active video games (i.e., exergaming) are the ideal solution to promote and encourage more energy expenditure during their free time. Despite the potential health benefits of commercially available Exergaming in children, this PA modality has not been well studied as an intervention strategy for children with a FASD. This pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) aims to develop, implement, and evaluate an 8-week, home-based, and family-centered RCT employing exergaming to promote movement behaviors as well as inhibitory control and attention in families of children with FASD. We plan to use LeapTV™ --- a commercially available educational Exergaming system designed for children ages three to eight years that accentuates learning through motion. We aim to recruit 16 parent-child dyads to evaluate 1) the feasibility, acceptability, appropriateness, and potential for the adoption and sustainment of Exergaming intervention from the perspective of parents, and 2) preliminary efficacy of such intervention on children’s physical and bio-psycho-social health benefits. This PA intervention program is innovative due to its unique approach of incorporating the concept of a healthy family environment into exergaming to assess its impact on compliance, sustainability, and transferability. Successful completion of this pilot study will provide the empirical basis for this exploratory design process. The findings from this pilot study will inform the appropriate use of exergaming in children with a FASD, as well as lay the groundwork for future large-scale multi-level multi-component family-based health media intervention trials, which may then be adapted or translated into school or community settings and can have a significant public health impact.