An eHealth Intervention, Called Healthy Online Parental Education (HOPE), Improves Vegetable Intake and Active Play Among Toddlers From Low-Income Families in West Texas

Abstract

ObjectivesThe objective of this study was to evaluate a parent-focused eHealth intervention aimed at improving fruit and vegetable intake and active play among toddlers in West Texas.MethodsA randomized controlled trial was conducted among 73 parents with toddlers between August and December 2021. Intervention group participants (n = 37) completed weekly videos and biweekly online cooking activities through the Healthy Online Parental Education (HOPE) website for a total of 8 weeks. The HOPE intervention curriculum was informed by the Social Cognitive Theory. Control group participants (n = 36) received printed materials about dietary recommendations for children. The primary outcomes were fruit and vegetable intake and physical activity among children. Secondarily, parents completed an assessment in nutritional knowledge, self-efficacy, and feeding practices. There were two data collection points at baseline and post-intervention. A linear mixed model was performed to compare intervention with control group effects over time on study outcomes.ResultsMore than half of the children were male (56%) with a mean age of 27 months. Children in the intervention group showed a small but significant increase in vegetable intake by 0.75 servings (P < 0.05) than in the control group. There was a significant increase in active playtime by 19.88 minutes in the intervention group (P < 0.05). Parents in the intervention group significantly increased their scores in nutritional knowledge (p = 0.01), self-efficacy around feeding (p = 0.02), and healthy modeling practices (P < 0.05) at post-intervention. There was no significant difference in child fruit intake between the intervention and control group at post-intervention.ConclusionsThe HOPE program was successful in improving vegetable intake and active playtime among toddlers, but not fruit intake at post-intervention. Parent-focused eHealth interventions may have the potential to address child health disparities in areas where the communities are underserved. The HOPE trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT05085041.Funding SourcesThis study was partially funded by the Graduate School at Texas Tech University.