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Health Promotion International, Vol. 19, No. 1, 21-31, March 2004
© Oxford University Press 2004. All rights reserved

The Dutch Heart Health community intervention ‘Hartslag Limburg’: results of an effect study at individual level

Gaby Ronda1,, Patricia Van Assema1, Math Candel2, Erik Ruland3, Mieke Steenbakkers3, Jan Van Ree4 and Johannes Brug5,6

1Department of Health Education and Promotion, 2Department of Methodology and Statistics, 4Department of General Practice and 5Department of Health Education and Promotion, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands, 3Department of Public Health of the Regional Public Health Institute Maastricht, Maastricht, The Netherlands and 6Department of Public Health, Erasmus MC Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands

Address for correspondence: Gaby Ronda, Department of Health Education and Promotion, Maastricht University, P.O. Box 616, 6200 MD Maastricht, The Netherlands, E-mail: g.ronda{at}gvo.unimaas.nl

‘Hartslag Limburg’ (Dutch for Heartbeat Limburg), a regional cardiovascular diseases (CVD) prevention program, integrates a community strategy and a high-risk strategy to reduce CVD risk behaviors. The present paper focuses on the effects of the community intervention on fat intake and physical activity. The project was based on community organization principles and health education theories and methods. In order to implement the intervention, nine local Health Committees were set up, each organizing activities that facilitate and encourage people to adopt a healthier lifestyle. A pre-test–post-test control group design with two post-tests was used to evaluate the intervention. At baseline, representative random cohort research samples were selected in the Maastricht region and in a control region. Data on fat intake and physical activity, and on the psychosocial determinants of these behaviors, were gathered by means of mail surveys. The present study indicates that the intervention had a significant effect on fat reduction, especially among respondents aged <=48 years (median age). Respondents in the Maastricht region were also more realistic about their fat intake at post-test as compared with the control region. Only a limited effect on intentions to increase physical activity was found.

Key words: cardiovascular diseases; community-based prevention; evaluation


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