The TUM Center for Health Promotion and Prevention in Childhood and Adolescence (CHAMPION) was established in October 2022 under the patronage of the Bavarian Minister of Health. The inaugural ceremony was held at TUM`s new campus in the Olympic Park during the International Summit on Child Health and Well-being. As early as 2020, members of the Department Health and Sport Sciences jointly started to draft the CHAMPION concept in collaboration with members of the TUM Department of Medicine, TUM School of Life Sciences, and affiliated stakeholders.
Research at CHAMPION is rooted in the social model of health, addressing health promotion and disease prevention from an interdisciplinary perspective. Research at CHAMPION is concerned with the entire environment affecting child and adolescent health and well-being, and will also focus on addressing health equity, the determinants of health, and the root causes of health inequalities. The CHAMPION research framework includes investigating health resources to promote health (asset-based perspective to health) and risk factors to prevent diseases (risk-based perspective to health), and takes into account contemporary issues in child and adolescent health.
Research at CHAMPION benefits highly from the combined public health and biomedical research excellence and expertise in the new TUM School of Medicine and Health. CHAMPION also facilitates synergies to other TUM Schools relevant to child and adolescent health, such as the TUM School of Life Sciences, School of Social Sciences and School Technology, Natural Science, and Computation, Information and Technology as well as the TUM Integrative and Corporate Research Centers. Collaboration across Schools, Departments, and Research Centers enables drawing from diverse research topics, disciplines, and methodologies relevant to children and adolescents’ health development over the life-course, including health promotion, disease prevention, healthcare, education and sustainable development. These features and their combination make CHAMPION unique compared to other academic research centres and networks in Europe and beyond that mostly focus on biomedical, curative, and risk-based research approaches.
Informed by the underlying research framework, CHAMPION includes a cross-sectoral approach in cooperation with actors from practice and policy. CHAMPION will generate up-to-date evidence on various dimensions of health promotion and prevention in relation to children and adolescents and actively contribute to European capacity building in child and adolescent public health and medicine.
The main goals of CHAMPION are to
- Conduct innovative research projects, including basic and applied science
- Facilitate research training of early career researchers and PhD students
- Enable child and adolescent health promotion and prevention topics in the School`s graduate and undergraduate teaching and study programs
CHAMPION is based on a cluster structure with four focus topics rooted in child and adolescent health promotion: (1) physical health, (2) mental health, (3) school health and (4) climate and environmental health. Research in these clusters investigate contemporary health promotion and prevention issues, taking into account the various determinants of health (social, cultural, political, cultural, digital, commercial), participatory approaches, empowerment, diversity and gender issues, inclusion, and professionals working with children and adolescents. Research projects focus on different areas of study including individual health, population health, public health, global health, one health, and planetary health. These areas represent crosscutting topics within CHAMPION, also framed by core 21st century mega trends in health: health equity, sustainable development, NCDs, health care, digital health, healthy lifestyles, and systems approaches (see figure above).
More than 40 professors and their scientific staff from different schools at TUM and other academic and non-academic institutions are involved in CHAMPION and contribute to the research clusters. Prospectively, the clusters will conduct research in their predefined and expertise fields and together generate new knowledge in order to provide evidence to inform intervention and policy development. CHAMPION will act locally, regionally, and internationally and collaborate with actors from research, practice and policy from a variety of backgrounds and fields. In this context, CHAMPION actively seeks partnerships and collaboration with regional, local and international partners. In 2022, CHAMPION officially launched a partnership with the UNESCO Global Chair Health and Education, which is in Paris, France, and both partners will collaborate on new European and global projects on child and adolescent health promotion and prevention.
CHAMPION will be fully integrated into the new TUM School of Medicine and Health in October 2023, leading research and teaching on all matters related to child and adolescent health promotion and prevention.
Exercise and bone tumor
Influence of a prehabilitative exercise intervention on structural and functional parameters in children and adolescents with a bone tumor
This study aims to investigate the effect of an individualized training program, implemented during neoadjuvant chemotherapy. This explorative approach of prehabilitation might mitigate the degradation processes of musculoskeletal structures and associated functional limitations during and after acute therapy for the treatment of bone tumors in children and adolescents.
Chair: Preventive Pediatrics, Project Website: Kinderklinik Schwabing, Funding: Initiative krebskranke Kinder München e.V.,
Focus Topic: Physical Health
Cardiac Function after Childhood Cancer
Early Detection of Cardiac Functional Impairments Following Potentially Cardiotoxic Cancer Therapy in Childhood and Adolescence – A Feasibility Study
Cardiovascular late effects following childhood cancer are problematic. The early detection of subclinical changes is scarcely achievable with conventional diagnostic methods, but may be successful under physical stress. This study examines cardiac function in individuals aged 10-25 years in the first and fifth year post-therapy using stress echocardiography and spiroergometry, comparing the results with those of healthy control subjects
Chair: Preventive Pediatrics, Project Website: Kinderklinik Schwabing, Funding: German Heart Research Foundation
Focus Topic: Physical Health
fit4future
Evaluation of the implementation and effectiveness of the holistic health promotion program "fit4future" in daycare centers and primary schools.
Since 2016, the fit4future program, supported by DAK-Gesundheit and the fit4future foundation Germany, has encouraged children and adolescents to lead a healthy lifestyle. In 2022, a new four-year phase began, focusing on empowering schools and daycare centers to independently implement health promotion activities. This is done through workshops, lesson series, and digital materials. The working group evaluates implementation and effectiveness using quantitative and qualitative methods, allowing the program to continuously adapt and advance health promotion research.
Chair: Didactics in Sport and Health, Project Website: fit4future, Funding: DAK Gesundheit
Focus Topic: Physical Health, Mental Health, School Health
Interaction
Seeing students through teacher eyes
The project "Interaction – Seeing students through teacher eyes" studies teacher-student interactions, focusing on teachers' diagnostic competence. According to adaptive teaching concepts, teachers who accurately assess students’ motivation, interest, and cognitive abilities can better tailor instruction to individual needs, leading to improved learning outcomes. It's especially important to identify students who overestimate or underestimate their abilities. However, current findings show that teachers mainly interact with students they perceive as high-performing to maintain a smooth lesson flow. Educational researchers also highlight that teachers often lack diagnostic skills, particularly in recognizing inconsistencies in students' cognitive and motivational characteristics.
Chair: Educational Psychology, Project Website: Interaction, Funding: DFG
Focus Topic: School Health
Social participation after cancer – SupaTeen
Social inequalities in participation and activity among children and adolescents with leukemia, brain tumors, and sarcomas
Current medical treatments result in high survival rates for childhood cancer. However, various side effects and late consequences can significantly impact the activity and participation of affected children and adolescents. This project aims to investigate the influence of social determinants, especially parental social status, on the participation and activity of children and adolescents (ages 10 to 18) with leukemia, brain tumors, and sarcomas. Data will be collected through a prospective multicenter study at three time points: t1 (within the first month after diagnosis), t2 (after therapy completion), and t3 (six months post-therapy). The project seeks to provide valuable insights into social risk groups to identify and support children and adolescents in high-risk situations early on.
Chair: Social Determinants of Health, Project Website: SupaTeen, Funding: Deutsche Krebshilfe
Focus Topic: Physical Health, Mental Health, School Health
Gendered Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Adolescents in LMICs
Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Child Marriage, Sexual and Reproductive Health, and Domestic Violence in India and Zambia
The project draws on primary quantitative and qualitative data collected among adolescent girls in Zambia and India to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on gender inequality in the Global South. It thereby puts specific focus on three central indicators of gender inequality, namely (1) gender-based violence (SDG target 5.2), (2) child and forced marriage (SDG target 5.3), and (3) sexual and reproductive health (SDG target 5.6).
Chair: Professorship of Global Health, Project Website: COVID-19, Funding: DFG,
Focus Topic: Physical Health
TENSIONED - Holistic health in focus
Exercise, fitness, stress, sleep and blood vessels - For a strong future for adults with congenital heart defects
This study includes stress, exercise, sleep, physical fitness and the vascular status of the patients. Activity, stress and sleep are measured over seven days using wearable technology - watches that make it possible to collect large amounts of data around the clock and evaluate it pseudonymously. We hope that these technical possibilities will enable us to make precise statements about the three parameters and also provide important conclusions about the fitness and vascular structures of these patients.
Chair: Preventive Pediatrics, Project Website: Tensioned, Funding: Fördergemeinschaft Deutsche Kinderherzzentren e.V
Focus Topic: Physical Health, Mental Health
MuCAYA+
Munich Cardiovascular Adaptation in Young Athletes Study
Competitive sports in childhood and adolescence often require weekly training loads of 10-20 hours, far exceeding the WHO recommended 60 minutes of daily physical activity. This can negatively impact the cardiovascular system, similar to adult athletes. Therefore, early monitoring of cardiovascular health in young athletes is of great importance. The MuCAYA+ study is a project funded by the DFG, which over three years explores the effects of intense physical activity on children and adolescents. Annually, 250 young athletes are examined in the sports medicine outpatient clinic to analyze the relationship between cardiovascular adaptations, exercise and performance, body composition, eating habits and biochemical factors.
Chair: Preventive Pediatrics, Project Website: Mucaya+, Funding: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft: DFG
Focus Topic: Physical Health
kidsTUMove goes Europe – cordially fit
Empowering Chronically Ill Children and Adolescents Through Sports
The project aims to provide children and adolescents with chronic diseases or post-traumatic stress disorder with access to sports programs and physical activity. The project is funded by the EU until June 2025. Our chair is coordinating the consortium. The partnership includes universities and organizations from Greece, Italy, Spain and Portugal. In cooperation, a training manual for exercise instructors will be developed to train affected persons in a professional and sustainable way. In addition, the establishment of an online platform will make information and sports programs easily accessible to all groups of the European population and build a network of health experts. For more information, visit the project website or the social channels of KTM goes Europe - cordially fit.
Chair: Preventive Pediatrics, Project Website: Insta: ktm_kidstumove, X: @kidsTUMoveEU, Funding: European Union - ERASMUS+
Focus Topic: Physical Health, Mental Health
TUM4Health
The student health management program at TUM
TUM4Health is TUM's holistic student health management program. The offers are demand-oriented, target group-specific, low-threshold and always free of charge for TUM students. TUM4Health is an exclusive and far-reaching offer for TUM students, with the aim of making TUM an outstanding health-promoting university and creating a good study (work) life balance for students. The focus is on training and strengthening the resources of each individual, developing health awareness and changing the living environment. To this end, all key health-promoting levels are included: Strengthening the skills and resources of each individual, Development of health-promoting framework conditions and Participation in the "TUM" living environment. Based on targeted data collection of health parameters (TUM health survey, own sports medicine measurements, quick surveys on well-being, etc.), the offers of TUM4Health are always adapted to the needs of the students in order to support sustainable and healthy development.
Chair, Preventive Pediatrics, Project Webiste: TUM4Health , Funding: Techniker Krankenkasse
Focus Topic: Physical Health, Mental Health, School/Student Health