Community-based nutrition intervention to promote oral health and restore healthy body weight in refugee children: a scoping review

Abstract

Objective: To determine the scope and quality of evidence on the effectiveness of community-based nutrition interventions to promote oral health and restore healthy body weight in school-aged refugee children.

Basic research design: Scoping review using a systematic approach.

Main outcome measures: Oral health and body weight.

Results: Four primary studies, two evaluation studies and one systematic review met the inclusion criteria. No nutrition interventions or reviews to promote oral health in school-aged refugee children were found. There is limited weak evidence for the effectiveness of community-based nutrition interventions to restore healthy body weight in refugee settings. A systematic review also reported weak evidence of correction of child body weight as a result of community-based nutrition interventions in refugee camps.

Conclusion: This scoping review found no community-based nutrition interventions for school-aged refugee children to promote oral health and restore healthy body weight. There is limited and weak evidence for the effectiveness of community-based nutrition interventions to restore healthy body weight in refugee settings. There is a need to conduct an early phase study to develop and co-produce community-based nutrition interventions to promote oral health and healthy body weight for children residing in long-term refugee situations and to investigate the feasibility for their implementation.

Keywords: Children; body weight; nutrition; oral health; refugees.