Many of our Center Scientists have made an interesting finding in new research: free summer programs reduce children’s BMI, while children who do not participate in summer programs have an increased BMI during the summer. The more days children spend in summer programs, the greater the BMI reduction effects.

Center Associate Director and CTL Core Lead Scientist Michael Beets, as well as Center Scientists Sarah Burkart, Elizabeth Adams, Glenn Weaver, Bridget Armstrong, and SDM Core Lead Scientist Alex McLain all contributed to the research behind this finding.

The randomized controlled trial organized 422 children into groups that either got a free summer day camp for 8-10 weeks or business as usual. The full findings of the research were highlighted in a JAMA Pediatrics article earlier this month.

This research, like other studies done by our Center Scientists, uses a USC-coined framework called the Structured Days Hypothesis. It suggests that structured days, i.e. school or summer program days, influence and promote healthy behaviors, whereas unstructured days have a negative impact on health behaviors. This can be especially true for children from low-income households.

To read more on Dr. Beets’ findings, check out the USC ASPH news article here.

The full research article is available to read in JAMA Pediatrics here.