Child & Youth Diabetes Strategy

mDAWN Kids: mobile Digital-health for Activity and Wellness

University of British Columbia

Focus: Technology and digital health literacy, BC school curriculum, type 2 diabetes prevention

Target Population: Children aged 9-14

Reach: Pilot, three middle schools with diverse populations selected from across BC

Grant:  $225,000

Project Goal

To develop and test an interactive and fun technology-based intervention aimed at reducing modifiable risk factors associated with type 2 diabetes (e.g., abdominal obesity, physical activity, nutrition, sleep, stress).

Project Overview

Technology can enliven interactive classroom lessons while teaching students healthy skills to prevent chronic diseases and encourage lifelong wellness. Building upon the project team’s previously tested, Learning for Life digital health curriculum for grade 4-7 students, UBC‘s mDAWN Kids will implement and evaluate the feasibility of a student-centred curriculum that includes mobile health tools (wearable sensors such as Fitbits, online interactive comics) to promote healthy lifestyle behaviours (physical activity, healthy eating, sleep hygiene and social/emotional wellbeing), prevent obesity and type 2 diabetes, and raise digital health literacy (i.e., the critical appraisal and safe use of digital tools) in students. Representatives from BC Ministries of Health and Education, school boards and schools, and students and parents will be engaged in the study.