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Table 2 Methodological quality assessment items (Adapted from van Sluijs et al. 2007) [12 ]

From: Teaching approaches and strategies that promote healthy eating in primary school children: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Item

Description

A

Key baseline characteristics are presented separately for treatment groups (age, and one relevant outcome (food consumption/energy intake; fruit and vegetable consumption or preference; reduced sugar consumption or preference; nutritional knowledge) and for randomised controlled trials and controlled trials, positive if baseline outcomes were statistically tested and results of tests were provided.

B

Randomisation procedure clearly and explicitly described and adequately carried out (generation of allocation sequence, allocation concealment and implementation)

C

Validated measures of food consumption/energy intake and/or fruit and vegetable consumption or preference and/or reduced sugar consumption or preference and/or nutritional knowledge (validation in same age group reported and/or cited)

D

Drop out reported and ≤20% for <6-month follow-up or ≤30% for ≥6-month follow-up

E

Blinded outcome variable assessments

F

Food consumption/energy intake and/or fruit and vegetable consumption or preference and/or reduced sugar consumption or preference and/or nutritional knowledge assessed a minimum of 6 months after pre-test

G

Intention to treat analysis for food consumption/energy intake and/or fruit and vegetable consumption or preference and/or reduced sugar consumption or preference and/or nutritional knowledge outcomes(s) (participants analysed in group they were originally allocated to, and participants not excluded from analyses because of non-compliance to treatment or because of some missing data)

H

Potential confounders accounted for in outcome analysis (e.g. baseline score, group/cluster, age)

I

Summary results for each group + treatment effect (difference between groups) + its precision (e.g. 95% confidence interval)

J

Power calculation reported, and the study was adequately powered to detect hypothesized relationships