Nourishing Boomers and Beyond Reaches 50-Plus Year Olds with Health-Related Information

Abstract

Objective: ‘‘Nourishing Boomers and Beyond’’ aims to improve participants’ dietary choices and physical activity, improve health literacy and use of technology, and build audience for Extension programs. Target Audience: Adults ages 50 and older participated in the program. Theory, Prior Research, Rationale: Informed by social cognitive theory, the curriculum uses education and environmental support to promote behavior change. Description: According to theU.S. Administration onAging (2013), thenumber of adults aged 65 andolderwill double to more than 70 million by 2030, which will place increasing demands on the nation’s healthcare system. Using traditional face-to-face classes by Extension field staff supplemented with technology-based delivery of healthrelated information, the 10 monthly lessons are based on body systems (muscles, heart, bones, brain, eyes, etc.). The program includes a website www.ndsu.edu/boomers with a monthly theme, a daily Facebook page post, Pinterest pins, online modules, and a monthly e-newsletter. Evaluation: Surveysand technology tools areused todetermineprogrameffectiveness.Of thosewhocompleted thesurvey for ‘‘Nourish Your Eyes’’ (n1⁄4275), 48% had participated in the ‘‘nourishyourmuscles’’ class and55%hadparticipated in the ‘‘nourish your heart’’ class. About 98% indicated they learned something new, 95% planned to make a lifestyle change and 63% planned to try an eye-healthy food they had never tried previously. About 32% of the attendees used Facebook. Technology results were analyzed usingGoogle Analytics. To date, the number of web page views has reached 18,682, with 1,468 ongoing users. Conclusions and Implications: Face-to-face education supplemented with technology-based information has promoted knowledge gain and behavior change. Funding: USDA, Grant #2013-46100-21467.