Osteoporosis in the focus of public health: effectiveness of educational programs for school-age children as a primary prevention strategy

Background: Osteoporosis is a global health problem, and achieving peak bone mass during adolescence is critical for preventing the disease later in life. Insufficient awareness among adolescents about osteoporosis risk factors and prevention methods requires the development of educational programs.

Aim: The aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of an educational program on osteoporosis prevention among schoolchildren and to determine the level of knowledge retention in the long term.

Materials and methods: A prospective study was conducted with the participation of schoolchildren, which included three stages of questioning: before training, after completion of the educational program and one year after training. The educational program consisted of two thematic classes: «What you need to know about the human musculoskeletal system and its functions» and «Osteoporosis — a bone disease», «How to build healthy bones in childhood». To assess the assimilation of the material, a specially developed questionnaire of 10 questions was used, covering key aspects of osteoporosis prevention, including the role of nutrition, vitamins, physical activity and risk factors for the disease.

Results: The initial level of knowledge of schoolchildren was 6.3±1.5 points (63.1% correct answers). After the educational program, a statistically significant increase in the level of awareness to 9.8±0.6 points (p<0.001) was observed, while for most questions the share of correct answers exceeded 97%. A control survey a year later showed a partial decrease in residual knowledge to 9.5±1.2 points, but they remained statistically significantly higher than the initial indicators (p<0.001).

Conclusion: Educational programs for the prevention of osteoporosis demonstrate high efficiency in increasing the level of knowledge of schoolchildren about the health of the skeletal system. The obtained results confirm the feasibility of introducing such programs into the school education system as an effective mechanism for primary prevention of osteoporosis and the formation of healthy lifestyle skills in children.

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