Process and Outcomes From a Youth-Led Campaign to Address Healthy Eating in an Urban High School

This article describes a pilot youth advocacy initiative for obesity prevention informed by social cognitive theory, social network theory, and theories of community mobilization. With assistance from school and health leaders, adolescent-aged youth led a cafeteria food labeling and social marketing campaign. We implemented an anonymous survey 2 weeks prior to and again at the conclusion of the campaign, and used cafeteria records to track servings of fruits and vegetables. The campaign resulted in a significant increase in youths’ confidence to identify healthy foods (OR 1.97, 95 % CI 1.01, 3.84, p = .048), and a significant increase in per person per day servings of fruits (0.02, p = .03) and vegetables (0.01, p = .02). The results of our pilot were promising, and the integration of concepts from multiple theories benefited the implementation process. Obesity prevention initiatives should include strategies that encourage youth to create health promotion community networks and lead changes to their social and physical environments.