P56 Changes in Healthy Eating and Physical Activity Behaviors of Low-Income Adult Georgians Participating in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education (SNAP-Ed)

Abstract

Objective To examine the impact of Food Talk: Better U (FTBU), the University of Georgia SNAP-Ed's new healthy weight management program on healthy eating, food resource management, and physical activity behaviors in a sample of low-income Georgians. Use of Theory or Research Social cognitive theory and expanded health belief model. Target Audience SNAP-Ed eligible Georgian adults with children Program Description FTBU was developed based on a comprehensive formative evaluation. FTBU is a series of four 90-minute lessons taught by paraprofessionals focusing on portion control, goal setting, limiting added sugar, small healthy shifts, and problem-solving strategies. Each lesson includes a sharing session, didactic lesson, physical activity (PA), cooking demonstration and tasting, and goal setting. Evaluation Methods Outcome evaluation of the program used pre- and post-self-administered questionnaire, 24-hour dietary recalls, and self-reported and measured weight. Outcome measures included Medium Term behavior change indicators (MT1, 2, and 3) from the SNAP-Ed Evaluation Framework and other validated measures. McNemar tests were used to examine changes in reported healthy behaviors between pre- and post-test. Results A total of 454 low-income Georgians participated in FTBU in FY 2018 (mean age 52.6 ± 17.1 years, 74.4% females, 47.6% Black, 68.3% overweight/obese). Overall, participants reported engaging in more healthy behaviors after the intervention. The percent of participants who reported eating more than one fruit (MT1c) and vegetable (MT1d) per day significantly increased after the intervention. Most food resource management indicators (MT2a, b) showed a significant increase between pre- and post-test. The percent meeting guidelines for engaging in moderate-vigorous PA (MT3b) and PA to make muscles stronger (MT3c) also increased significantly post-intervention. Conclusions The findings suggest FTBU has potential to improve healthy behaviors aimed at healthy weight management practices among SNAP-Ed eligible adults with a high burden of obesity. Further evaluations are needed using a rigorous research design with control groups. Funding SNAP-Ed.