Blog‐based nutrition education intervention for college students (626.10)

Abstract

Transition between adolescence and adulthood, college students frequently experienced dramatic weight gain. A web‐based nutrition program could potentially be used to provide nutrition information and encourage college students to adopt healthy eating behaviors. The objective of this study was to assess the impact of a blog‐based nutrition education intervention on food groups and omega‐3 (n‐3) fatty acid consumption in college students at a southern university. Food frequency and self‐efficacy questionnaires were used to assessed the effectiveness of MyPlate and n‐3 fatty acid education to improve dietary intake and self‐efficacy after a 6‐week online nutrition education intervention. A recruiting email was sent to all students enrolled in the university and 322 participants were randomly assigned into the intervention (MyPlate and n‐3 fatty acids education) or control group (MyPlate only). Eighty‐six of them successfully completed both the nutrition education and questionnaires through the 6‐week time period. The results showed that participants in both control and intervention groups increased confidence at the end of the study to include n‐3 foods when eating out (p<.05). Using MyPlate and supplementary information about n‐3 fatty acids did not significantly affect participants' dietary consumption from the food groups or to increase n‐3 fatty acid consumption.Grant Funding Source: Supported by Western Kentucky University new faculty grant