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Evaluating the impact of nutrition education on fourth grade student food selection and consumption
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 27 POSTER SESSION: NUTRITION EDUCATION/PUBLIC RELATIONS HEAD START III, PARENTS IN ACTION FOR A HEALTHY GENERATION: A NUTRITION EDUCATION PROJECT FOR HISPANIC HEAD START PARENTS. R. Dow, PhD, RD, CHE, J.C. Rodriguez, PhD, RD, CHE, I. Suarez, PhD, L.D. American Home Economics Association, Alexandria, VA. The purpose of this project was to develop, implement, and evaluate a culturally sensitive nutrition program for Hispanic Head Start parents (1). The program was comprised of three major phases: needs assessment language development of Spanish and planning, educational materials, and program implementation and evaluation. Demographic data from Head Start identified Mexican American, Puerto Rican, and Central Americans as the three Hispanic subgroups utilizing Head Start. The needs assessment indicated obesity, anemia, and stunting (among Central Americans) as the major nutritional concerns. The Advisory Committee suggested a story ("novella") format for three educational videos, a calendar, and an educator's guide. During the project's second phase the education and evaluation materials were developed. The first nine minutes of the video addressed nutrition related topics in a story format, and included individuals from the three designated groups in life settings common to Head Start parents. The final three minutes of each video included one of three (Mexican American, Puerto Rican, or Central American) Latin Roots Festivals. This segment was filmed at three different Head Start Centers and included actual center children, parents, and staff. The calendar used culturally appropriate pictures that reinforced the video's messages. For the final phase, the educational package was evaluated for acceptance and use at three Head Start centers in Texas, Connecticut, and the Washington D.C. area. Both parents and staff evaluated the program and materials. Sixty two parents completed the evaluations, which focused on the technical quality of the materials, nutrition information, and usefulness.
EVALUATING THE IMPACT OF NUTRITION EDUCATION ON FOURTH GRADE STUDENT FOOD SELECTION AND CONSUMPTION. A.M. Schaefer, MS, RD, V.R. Burkholder. MS, RD, H.A. Dieken,PhD, RD, and P.D. Murphy, PhD, School of Human Development and Education, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND The hypothesis of this research was that a ten lesson nutrition education unit would result in improved student selection and acceptance of foods meeting the guidelines set forth in the 1990 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Food consumption and food selection behaviors of fourth grade students in the public school system was observed and measured before and after the presentation of a nutritional education program. The five-week nutrition program, based upon the 1990 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, consisted of short, ageappropriate, locale specific video-taped lessons involving puppets and senior undergraduate Coordinated Program students in Dietetics. Each program was concluded with a tasting party featuring the guideline discussed. The study sample consisted of twelve fourth grade public school classes totaling 270 students and 12 teachers. A random sampling method was used to select participating classes, classes were then grouped by socioeconomic status and finally were randomly assigned to either an experimental or a control group. Student behavior change was assessed using plate waste studies and selective menu exercises before and after the education program was presented. Plate waste studies had been used and validated in previous studies. The specific plate waste technique used in this research was the bulk weight (weighed) method for a comparison of whole class results. The selective menu exercise was a new technique developed for this research. The selective menu exercise was used to assess student dietary behavior (acceptance) change. Results from the plate waste study were consistent with those reported in previous research. These results, however, were inconclusive due to the pretest consumption patterns of the students. Results from the selective menu exercises did reveal improved acceptance of foods lower in fat and sodium for the experimental classes following exposure to the nutrition education program. It was concluded that the the nutrition unit had successfully impacted student food choices toward more healthy food selections.
1. This project sponsored by the American Home Economics Association and funded by a grant from Kraft.
DAIRY PRODUCT PREFERENCES, NUTRITION ATTITUDES AND HEALTHFUL FOOD CHOICES. BJ Scott, RL Brunner, T Carmody and ST St. Jeor. Univ. of Nevada School of Medicine, Reno, NV and VA Medical Center, San Francisco, CA The purpose of this study was to describe the development and testing of two new questionnaires: 1) a dairy questionnaire (DQ) assessing health and nutrition beliefs and dairy product knowledge, preference, use; and 2) a brief, self-scored food habits questionnaire (FHQ) patterned on a food frequency design (past month). Two hypotheses were tested: ) attitudes and knowledge about the relationship of nutrition to health (DQ items) would be reflected in healthy food choices (FHQ scores) and 2) dairy product preference (DO items) would relate to overall dietary quality (FHQ scores). The study was done in two "stages" with content and stylistic revisions of both the DQ and FHQ between administrations. In the first stage, DQ (48 items) and FHQ (42 items) were completed by undergraduate students (n=37) in a basic nutrition course. The FHQ was organized by 4 basic food groups plus 'other' (e.g.snacks, alcohol) and 'fats'. Factor analysis was used with the DQ to group test items into dimensions which had explanatory power (Eigen values >.5). Four DQ factors were identified and labeled to more meaningfully characterize the concepts: 1) "nutrition concern"; 2) 'disbelief that fat is unhealthy"; 3) 'food cures illness"; and 4) "my own eating is healthy". A significant correlation (r=.41, p<.05) was noted between the factor 4 (my own eating is healthy) from DQ and an overall healthier food choice score on the FHQ. In the second stage, the DQ and FHQ were revised to drop ambiguous items, add items to the DO which looked at negative influences on healthy eating (eg: personal, social, time, etc), and reorganize the FHQ to make it consistent with the USDA "food pyramid' concept. They were then administered to a second undergraduate nutrition class (n=84). Subsequent factor analysis of DQ produced 4 useful and interpretable factors labeled as follows: 1) "nutrition concern"; 2) "nutrition affects health'; 3) 'food cures illness"; and 4) "my diet is poor & don't eat better due to personal stress". 'Nutrition concern" from the DQ correlated significantly with a better overall diet on FHQ (r=.41, pc.01) and with better scores in all food categories. Higher scores on Factor 4 (poor diet) related inversely to the overall FHQ score (r=-.28, p<.05) reflecting lower nutrition adequacy. Factor 4 had its strongest inverse relationship with the other" (snacks, alcohol etc.) category (r=-.33, p<.01) indicating that poor diet due to stress was associated with intake of high fat snacks, alcohol and soft drinks with sugar. In addition to the factor scores, selection of specific dairy products on the DQ was examined. Low fat dairy preference predicted higher scores on the cereals/grains and fruit/vegetable categories (r=.26 & .34, p<.05 and .01 respectively) while dairy preference in general was associated with a poorer overall score on the FHQ (r=-.46, p<.01). The results indicate that health attitudes from a questionnaire can partially predict food choices and that the relationship of dairy product use to the healthfulness of the diet is complex, reflecting the wide range of fat content of dairy products.
A-62 / SEPTEMBER 1993 SUPPLEMENT VOLUME 93 NUMBER 9
ASSESSING NUTRITION LABEL USEFULNESS: COMPARISON OF OLD AND NEW LABEL COMPONENTS. D.E.Smith, MS,RD, M.K.Yadrick, PhD,RD, L.J.Boudreaux, PhD,RD, and W.A.Forsythe III, PhD, College of Health and Human Sciences, University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS New food labels intended to help consumers choose more healthful diets will appear on food To determine if products by May of 1994. nutrition information on the new label is more easily understood than that on the old label, students enrolled in an introductory nutrition course at a southeastern university were asked to interpret information using the new (N=138) or old (N=153) label. Students answered a series of 9 questions using mock food labels created to conform to the new or old format. Sample questions included identifying which of two foods contained more of specific ingredients, such as sodium, fiber, and saturated fat, identifying from the ingredient list sources of fat, cholesterol, sugar, or sodium in the products, and calculating the percentage of calories from fat in food items. Students using the new label scored significantly higher than those using the old New and old label group scores label (p<.001). did not differ for questions in which students were asked to calculate the percentage of calories from fat and identify sources of fat, cholesterol, sugars, or sodium from the ingredient list. The new nutrition label should be helpful to this population in making more healthful food selections.
EVALUATING THE IMPACT OF NUTRITION EDUCATION ON FOURTH GRADE STUDENT FOOD SELECTION AND CONSUMPTION. A.M. Schaefer, MS, RD, V.R. Burkholder. MS, RD, H.A. Dieken,PhD, RD, and P.D. Murphy, PhD, School of Human Development and Education, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND The hypothesis of this research was that a ten lesson nutrition education unit would result in improved student selection and acceptance of foods meeting the guidelines set forth in the 1990 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Food consumption and food selection behaviors of fourth grade students in the public school system was observed and measured before and after the presentation of a nutritional education program. The five-week nutrition program, based upon the 1990 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, consisted of short, ageappropriate, locale specific video-taped lessons involving puppets and senior undergraduate Coordinated Program students in Dietetics. Each program was concluded with a tasting party featuring the guideline discussed. The study sample consisted of twelve fourth grade public school classes totaling 270 students and 12 teachers. A random sampling method was used to select participating classes, classes were then grouped by socioeconomic status and finally were randomly assigned to either an experimental or a control group. Student behavior change was assessed using plate waste studies and selective menu exercises before and after the education program was presented. Plate waste studies had been used and validated in previous studies. The specific plate waste technique used in this research was the bulk weight (weighed) method for a comparison of whole class results. The selective menu exercise was a new technique developed for this research. The selective menu exercise was used to assess student dietary behavior (acceptance) change. Results from the plate waste study were consistent with those reported in previous research. These results, however, were inconclusive due to the pretest consumption patterns of the students. Results from the selective menu exercises did reveal improved acceptance of foods lower in fat and sodium for the experimental classes following exposure to the nutrition education program. It was concluded that the the nutrition unit had successfully impacted student food choices toward more healthy food selections.
1. This project sponsored by the American Home Economics Association and funded by a grant from Kraft.
DAIRY PRODUCT PREFERENCES, NUTRITION ATTITUDES AND HEALTHFUL FOOD CHOICES. BJ Scott, RL Brunner, T Carmody and ST St. Jeor. Univ. of Nevada School of Medicine, Reno, NV and VA Medical Center, San Francisco, CA The purpose of this study was to describe the development and testing of two new questionnaires: 1) a dairy questionnaire (DQ) assessing health and nutrition beliefs and dairy product knowledge, preference, use; and 2) a brief, self-scored food habits questionnaire (FHQ) patterned on a food frequency design (past month). Two hypotheses were tested: ) attitudes and knowledge about the relationship of nutrition to health (DQ items) would be reflected in healthy food choices (FHQ scores) and 2) dairy product preference (DO items) would relate to overall dietary quality (FHQ scores). The study was done in two "stages" with content and stylistic revisions of both the DQ and FHQ between administrations. In the first stage, DQ (48 items) and FHQ (42 items) were completed by undergraduate students (n=37) in a basic nutrition course. The FHQ was organized by 4 basic food groups plus 'other' (e.g.snacks, alcohol) and 'fats'. Factor analysis was used with the DQ to group test items into dimensions which had explanatory power (Eigen values >.5). Four DQ factors were identified and labeled to more meaningfully characterize the concepts: 1) "nutrition concern"; 2) 'disbelief that fat is unhealthy"; 3) 'food cures illness"; and 4) "my own eating is healthy". A significant correlation (r=.41, p<.05) was noted between the factor 4 (my own eating is healthy) from DQ and an overall healthier food choice score on the FHQ. In the second stage, the DQ and FHQ were revised to drop ambiguous items, add items to the DO which looked at negative influences on healthy eating (eg: personal, social, time, etc), and reorganize the FHQ to make it consistent with the USDA "food pyramid' concept. They were then administered to a second undergraduate nutrition class (n=84). Subsequent factor analysis of DQ produced 4 useful and interpretable factors labeled as follows: 1) "nutrition concern"; 2) "nutrition affects health'; 3) 'food cures illness"; and 4) "my diet is poor & don't eat better due to personal stress". 'Nutrition concern" from the DQ correlated significantly with a better overall diet on FHQ (r=.41, pc.01) and with better scores in all food categories. Higher scores on Factor 4 (poor diet) related inversely to the overall FHQ score (r=-.28, p<.05) reflecting lower nutrition adequacy. Factor 4 had its strongest inverse relationship with the other" (snacks, alcohol etc.) category (r=-.33, p<.01) indicating that poor diet due to stress was associated with intake of high fat snacks, alcohol and soft drinks with sugar. In addition to the factor scores, selection of specific dairy products on the DQ was examined. Low fat dairy preference predicted higher scores on the cereals/grains and fruit/vegetable categories (r=.26 & .34, p<.05 and .01 respectively) while dairy preference in general was associated with a poorer overall score on the FHQ (r=-.46, p<.01). The results indicate that health attitudes from a questionnaire can partially predict food choices and that the relationship of dairy product use to the healthfulness of the diet is complex, reflecting the wide range of fat content of dairy products.
A-62 / SEPTEMBER 1993 SUPPLEMENT VOLUME 93 NUMBER 9
ASSESSING NUTRITION LABEL USEFULNESS: COMPARISON OF OLD AND NEW LABEL COMPONENTS. D.E.Smith, MS,RD, M.K.Yadrick, PhD,RD, L.J.Boudreaux, PhD,RD, and W.A.Forsythe III, PhD, College of Health and Human Sciences, University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS New food labels intended to help consumers choose more healthful diets will appear on food To determine if products by May of 1994. nutrition information on the new label is more easily understood than that on the old label, students enrolled in an introductory nutrition course at a southeastern university were asked to interpret information using the new (N=138) or old (N=153) label. Students answered a series of 9 questions using mock food labels created to conform to the new or old format. Sample questions included identifying which of two foods contained more of specific ingredients, such as sodium, fiber, and saturated fat, identifying from the ingredient list sources of fat, cholesterol, sugar, or sodium in the products, and calculating the percentage of calories from fat in food items. Students using the new label scored significantly higher than those using the old New and old label group scores label (p<.001). did not differ for questions in which students were asked to calculate the percentage of calories from fat and identify sources of fat, cholesterol, sugars, or sodium from the ingredient list. The new nutrition label should be helpful to this population in making more healthful food selections.