P149 Fruit and Vegetable Consumption of Michigan Youth and Adults: Locally Implemented SNAP-Ed Programs with Aggregated Impact

Abstract

<h3>Objective</h3> Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education (SNAP-Ed) at the Michigan Fitness Foundation is a collaboration of local and regional organizations whose work focuses on improving the health of Michigan's most vulnerable citizens. While organizations select and implement locally relevant programming, evaluation plans are designed to report common fruit and vegetable consumption measures aligned with the SNAP-Ed Evaluation Framework. <h3>Use of Theory or Research</h3> Aligned with the social ecological framework, SNAP-Ed works to address factors of health behavior across multiple levels of influence. While there is broad literature and understanding on the factors that influence healthy eating, programs can do the most good by addressing the local needs of the communities they serve. <h3>Target Audience</h3> Youth (grades 6-12) and adults (aged 18+) who received SNAP-Ed programming that included evidence-based nutrition education interventions based on local needs assessments. <h3>Program Description</h3> Design a common program evaluation that could be applied to a variety of direct education interventions to support local-level objectives and be aggregated to demonstrate state-level outcomes. <h3>Evaluation Methods</h3> Participants received a dietary questionnaire pre- and post-intervention. Participant data were matched based on demographic indicators and data were aggregated at the state-level. Descriptive statistics were calculated for all variables of interest, and Wilcoxon Signed Rank tests were used to compare differences pre- and post-intervention for fruit and vegetable consumption. <h3>Results</h3> Participants included 1512 youth and 647 adults from SNAP-Ed programs delivered by 20 community organizations across Michigan. A statistically significant increase was found for youth frequency of fruit consumption (pre: 1.62 ± 1.62; post: 1.75 ± 1.69; <i>P</i> = .022) and of vegetable consumption (pre: 1.70 ± 1.97; post: 1.88 ± 2.17; <i>P</i> = .002). Results were similar for adults with a statistically significant increase in frequency of fruit consumption (pre: 3.17 ± 1.23; post: 3.66 ± 1.19; <i>P</i> < .001) and of vegetable consumption (pre: 3.35 ± 1.14; post: 3.80 ± 1.14; <i>P</i> < .001). <h3>Conclusions</h3> Implementation of locally relevant SNAP-Ed programming selected by community organizations can positively impact fruit and vegetable consumption. Future research should explore characteristics across locally relevant programs to identify key implementation variables for greatest impact.