Table 3.
Associationsa Between School Policies and Practices and Student Weight Indicators, Stratified by Sex
| School policy/practice | Difference in average school BMI percentile d |
Difference in average school obesity d |
|---|---|---|
| All ninth grade students | ||
| Fruits or vegetables available in school stores or vending machines |
−0.01 (−0.03, 0.01) | −0.02 (−0.05, 0.00) |
| Sum of less healthy foods and drinks available b |
0.01 (0.00, 0.02) | 0.01 (−0.01, 0.02) |
| PE required | 0.00 (−0.04, 0.04) | 0.01 (−0.04, 0.07) |
| Intramural options or activity clubs available |
0.01 (−0.01, 0.04) | 0.01 (−0.03, 0.04) |
| Policy/practice summary score c | −0.01 (−0.02, 0.00) | −0.01 (−0.02, 0.00) |
| Ninth grade boys | ||
| Fruits or vegetables available in school stores or vending machines |
−0.01 (−0.04, 0.02) | −0.02 (−0.07, 0.02) |
| Sum of less healthy foods and drinks available b |
0.01 (0.00, 0.03) | 0.00 (−0.02, 0.02) |
| PE required | 0.02 (−0.05, 0.09) | 0.01 (−0.10, 0.11) |
| Intramural options or activity clubs available |
0.04 (0.00, 0.08) | 0.02 (−0.04, 0.08) |
| Policy/practice summary score c | −0.01 (−0.02, 0.00) | −0.01 (−0.03, 0.01) |
| Ninth grade girls | ||
| Fruits or vegetables available in school stores or vending machines |
0.00 (−0.04, 0.03) | −0.02 (−0.05, 0.01) |
| Sum of less healthy foods and drinks available b |
0.00 (−0.01, 0.02) | 0.01 (0.00, 0.03) |
| PE required | −0.01 (−0.08, 0.06) | 0.02 (−0.04, 0.07) |
| Intramural options or activity clubs available |
−0.02 (−0.06, 0.02) | 0.01 (−0.02, 0.05) |
| Policy/practice summary score c | 0.00 (−0.02, 0.01) | −0.01 (−0.03, 0.00) |
Adjusted for year, school-level free and reduced lunch, minority enrollment, and school.
Sum of less healthy foods and drinks available: Salty snacks, Candy, Chocolate candy, Soda, Sports drinks (maximum obtainable value of 5).
Policy summary score was calculated as follows: having fruits or vegetables available in school stores (1-item), PE required (1-item), intramural opportunities available (1-item) (yes=1); for each less healthy food or drink available (5-items) (no=1). Higher score is better score (maximum obtainable value of 8).
Coefficient with confidence intervals from fixed effects linear regression.
Note: Boldface indicates statistical significance (p<0.05).
PE, physical education