Exploring Effective Strategies: A Narrative Review of Psychoeducational Interventions to Improve Dietary and Physical Activity Behaviors

Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) pose substantial global health challenges, frequently driven by lifestyle behaviors such as unhealthy diet and physical inactivity. Adolescence represents a pivotal period for intervention, since habits during this stage often persist into adulthood. This review evaluates psychoeducational interventions aimed at enhancing dietary and physical activity (PA) behaviors among adolescents. A comprehensive literature search in PubMed and PsycINFO identified 19 studies (15 interventional studies and 4 systematic reviews), analyzing school-based interventions targeting healthy adolescents aged 12-18. These studies employed psychoeducational strategies within the school setting, utilizing diverse resources and involving both individual and group activities. While certain studies reported significant improvements in reducing unhealthy food consumption, increasing PA rates, and enhancing nutritional knowledge, the long-term evidence for such dietary and PA habit changes being sustained, as well as for improvement in youths' attitudes towards a healthy lifestyle, varied widely across studies. This variability reflects differences in study design, measures of success, intervention intensity and duration, participant adherence, socio-demographic profiles, and engagement strategies. Notably, peer interactions and family involvement, especially parental support, emerged as critical components in enhancing motivation and fostering behavioral change. The findings underscore the promising role of school settings for behavioral interventions, stressing the necessity for tailored, engaging strategies that take into consideration adolescent autonomy, social influences, peer dynamics, and family support to optimize health behavior outcomes.