- Email: [email protected]
Computer software for diet analyses
could be cited as a key example in this section . Regarding the need for full involvement of all professionals, this issue is addressed in the last two paragraphs of point three and also under point seven. However, no mention is made of the ways these professionals might be involved . In future revisions, the need for full involvement of all key personnel and the roles they assume in effective nutrition education could be made more explicit. We welcome this opportunity to respond to these thoughtful and constructive comments. Marjorie M. Devine, Ph.D. , SNE Representative, and Chairperson, National Nutrition Consortium, Suite 1, 1635 P Street, Washington, DC 20036.
Computer Software for Diet Analyses We would like to call the attention of nutrition educators to the availability and some applications of a computer software package for dietary analyses. Anyone who has had to analyze a diet us-
ing the data from food composition tables will know that by far the most time in the project was spent on tedious arithmetic rather than on the principles of nutrition or food science. At colleges and universities such analyses form a necessary part of many student courses involving study of food and its consumption by human beings. Not only students but also researchers and practitioners in dietetics, institution management, the food industry, and other related fields spend significant time and energy on such analyses. We designed our program to be useful for the beginner as well as the experienced computer user and for teaching, research, dietetic, and commercial applications. The new user analyzing a diet for the first time can ask the computer for help at any point in the program and receive advice on how to proceed. Default conditions are set to allow for reasonable results to be obtained in even the most adverse circumstances. An experienced research worker can quickly merge or compare a number of previously filed diets, and using the range of report formats available, either can monitor diets for nutritional
Using Market Research Approaches in Nutrition Education Phyllis L. Fleming and Judith E. Brown Program in Public Health Nutrition, School oj Public Health, University oj Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455 Responsiveness to consumer needs, preferences, and priorities is a basis for product development; failure to take into account these considerations often results in poor product acceptance. In the words of Dr. Seuss: At the fork of a road In the Vale of Va-V ode Five foot-weary salesmen have laid down their load. All day they '~e raced round in the heat, at top speeds, Unsuccessfully trying to sell ZizzerZoof Seeds Which nobody wants because nobody needs. (1) As a real-life example, manufacturers formulated early commercial cake mixes with powdered eggs and instructed the user simply to add water. The cake mixes did not sell very well. Inquiries of home4
JOURNAL OF NUTRITION EDUCATION
makers who were the primary users of the product revealed the convenience was less important to them than were their feelings that they were involved personally in the preparation of food for their families . Using this information, manufacturers stopped adding dried eggs to the mixes, required users to add fresh eggs, and sales improved (2). There are lessons for nutrition educators in the experiences of cake-mix manufacturers and in the rhymes of Dr. Seuss. If we develop and deliver nutrition education materials only according to professional objectives without considering input from the intended audience, we may be trying to sell a product for which there is no perceived need by inappropriate strategies. In order to increase the likelihood of successful nutrition education programs, a
content or can construct diets to a particular nutritional standard. Filed programs also can be modified or analyzed in new ways . Financial constraints can be introduced so that standards may be met within a given cost target. These aspects of the program may well have special interests to both commercial and noncommercial sectors. The program has been used extensively for teaching purposes at the undergraduate level. The computer does not replace the teacher, nor does it supplant the necessity for the student to think about the subject. However, it does free the student from the time-consuming arithmetic and allow for more time for looking at a variety of menus and diets for differing groups of people. We would be pleased to respond to inquiries from food and nutrition professionals wishing further details about this computer package. Paul Gamble, Roger Gentry, and Michael Kipps, Department oj Hotel, Catering, and Tourism Management, GuildJord University oj Surrey, GU25XH, England. first step, according to a marketing paradigm, is to identify target audience concerns. Qualitative techniques often used in market research, such as focus group discussions (3 , 4), individual in-depth interviews (5), and nominal group and delphi processes (6), are useful for gathering the initial information about audience needs and concerns. For example, our own work directed toward development of nutrition education materials for adolescents began with focus group discussions. We talked about the meaning of nutrition and about foods they liked, foods they actually ate, and the reasons for discrepancies. They spoke freely of their nutrition concerns and interests; we learned that in addition to appearance, physical fitness , and performance , our intended audience also was concerned about food additives and processing, cardiovascular disease, nutrition during pregnancy, and infant nutrition . We later used these insights to develop meaningful objectives and content for nutrition education materials for teenage audiences. Nutrition education efforts that do not consider audience concerns, understanding, interests, and priorities may not be effective. For example, we find that consumers do not agree on a definition of "junk" food . Thus, a nutrition education program that presents the message "don 't VOLUME
I3
NUMBER
1
1981
Computer Software for Diet Analyses We would like to call the attention of nutrition educators to the availability and some applications of a computer software package for dietary analyses. Anyone who has had to analyze a diet us-
ing the data from food composition tables will know that by far the most time in the project was spent on tedious arithmetic rather than on the principles of nutrition or food science. At colleges and universities such analyses form a necessary part of many student courses involving study of food and its consumption by human beings. Not only students but also researchers and practitioners in dietetics, institution management, the food industry, and other related fields spend significant time and energy on such analyses. We designed our program to be useful for the beginner as well as the experienced computer user and for teaching, research, dietetic, and commercial applications. The new user analyzing a diet for the first time can ask the computer for help at any point in the program and receive advice on how to proceed. Default conditions are set to allow for reasonable results to be obtained in even the most adverse circumstances. An experienced research worker can quickly merge or compare a number of previously filed diets, and using the range of report formats available, either can monitor diets for nutritional
Using Market Research Approaches in Nutrition Education Phyllis L. Fleming and Judith E. Brown Program in Public Health Nutrition, School oj Public Health, University oj Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455 Responsiveness to consumer needs, preferences, and priorities is a basis for product development; failure to take into account these considerations often results in poor product acceptance. In the words of Dr. Seuss: At the fork of a road In the Vale of Va-V ode Five foot-weary salesmen have laid down their load. All day they '~e raced round in the heat, at top speeds, Unsuccessfully trying to sell ZizzerZoof Seeds Which nobody wants because nobody needs. (1) As a real-life example, manufacturers formulated early commercial cake mixes with powdered eggs and instructed the user simply to add water. The cake mixes did not sell very well. Inquiries of home4
JOURNAL OF NUTRITION EDUCATION
makers who were the primary users of the product revealed the convenience was less important to them than were their feelings that they were involved personally in the preparation of food for their families . Using this information, manufacturers stopped adding dried eggs to the mixes, required users to add fresh eggs, and sales improved (2). There are lessons for nutrition educators in the experiences of cake-mix manufacturers and in the rhymes of Dr. Seuss. If we develop and deliver nutrition education materials only according to professional objectives without considering input from the intended audience, we may be trying to sell a product for which there is no perceived need by inappropriate strategies. In order to increase the likelihood of successful nutrition education programs, a
content or can construct diets to a particular nutritional standard. Filed programs also can be modified or analyzed in new ways . Financial constraints can be introduced so that standards may be met within a given cost target. These aspects of the program may well have special interests to both commercial and noncommercial sectors. The program has been used extensively for teaching purposes at the undergraduate level. The computer does not replace the teacher, nor does it supplant the necessity for the student to think about the subject. However, it does free the student from the time-consuming arithmetic and allow for more time for looking at a variety of menus and diets for differing groups of people. We would be pleased to respond to inquiries from food and nutrition professionals wishing further details about this computer package. Paul Gamble, Roger Gentry, and Michael Kipps, Department oj Hotel, Catering, and Tourism Management, GuildJord University oj Surrey, GU25XH, England. first step, according to a marketing paradigm, is to identify target audience concerns. Qualitative techniques often used in market research, such as focus group discussions (3 , 4), individual in-depth interviews (5), and nominal group and delphi processes (6), are useful for gathering the initial information about audience needs and concerns. For example, our own work directed toward development of nutrition education materials for adolescents began with focus group discussions. We talked about the meaning of nutrition and about foods they liked, foods they actually ate, and the reasons for discrepancies. They spoke freely of their nutrition concerns and interests; we learned that in addition to appearance, physical fitness , and performance , our intended audience also was concerned about food additives and processing, cardiovascular disease, nutrition during pregnancy, and infant nutrition . We later used these insights to develop meaningful objectives and content for nutrition education materials for teenage audiences. Nutrition education efforts that do not consider audience concerns, understanding, interests, and priorities may not be effective. For example, we find that consumers do not agree on a definition of "junk" food . Thus, a nutrition education program that presents the message "don 't VOLUME
I3
NUMBER
1
1981