Table 2.
Characteristics of excluded studies (randomized controlled trials)
| Characteristic | Study 1 | Study 2 | Study 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reference no. | 36 | 37 | 38, 39 |
| Author | Lachat et al. | French et al. | French et al., French et al. |
| Year | 2009 | 2001 | 2010, 2010 |
| Reason for exclusion | Participants were not only employees but also university students | Participants were not only worksite employees but also secondary school students | Interventions included fitness facility environmental interventions or physical activity enhancement like yoga or walking class interventions. |
| Country | Belgium | USA: Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minneapolis | USA: Metropolitan Minneapolis-St Paul area |
| Type of study | RCT | RCT | Cluster RCT |
| Participants | Regular (i.e., at least 3 meals/week) customers of a university cafeteria, essentially students and university staff | Secondary schools (adolescents) and worksites (adults) | Transportation workers (n = 190,488) |
| Total study population (I/C) | 209 (104/105), 156 (84/72) | Secondary school: N = 12, Worksite: N = 12 | |
| Sex | 36% male | ? | 79% male |
| Age | Mean (SD): 22.8 (3.5) years | ? | 19–79 years |
| Intervention duration | 3 weeks | 12 months | 18 months |
| Follow-up | 2 years | ||
| Intervention program | One portion of vegetables and two portions of fruit for free at lunchtime. | The overall design: Two kinds of setting: worksite and school Three levels of pricing: discounts of 10%, 25%, and 50% for low-fat snacksTwo levels of promotion: only label, label with sign |
・Lower prices for healthy vending machine choices with 10% discount ・Low-priced fruit available from farmers’ markets held 1 day/month ・Availability (50% healthy foods; the goal of the vending machine intervention was to ensure 50% of the available vending machine offerings met healthy food criteria) ・Physical activity enhancement and fitness facilities, yoga ・Group behavioral programs (calculating calories) ・Advisory groups based at the workplace ・Self-weighing team competition |
| Control program | No intervention | Pricing: equal pricePromotion: no labels and no signs | Control group |
| ITT* | ITT analysis: 209 ⇒ 156 | ? | Pre-post: 78%⇔74% |
| Outcome | Secondary outcomes: ・Fruit (g) ・Vegetables (g) ・Energy intake (kJ) ・Energy density (kJ/100 g) ・Energy from fat (%) ・Na (mg) |
Secondary outcome: Low-fat snack sale data (%) | Primary outcome: ・BMI, weight change Secondary outcomes: ・Sugar-sweetened beverages ・Fruit and vegetables (SV/day) ・Snacks, sweets (SV/day) ・Energy (kcal/day) ・Vending machine use |
*Intention-to-treat test (ITT): Intervention consisting of financial incentive program versus no financial incentive program
RCT randomized controlled trial, I/C intervention/control, SD standard deviation, BMI body mass index, SV serving, Na sodium