Recipes for Success: Lessons learned from the implementation of a food skills and nutrition education workshop with Gaelic athletic players on the Island of Ireland (IOI)

Abstract

Purpose: To evaluate the effectiveness of a practical food skills and nutrition education workshop and investigate the attitudes towards, and knowledge of, nutrition among young amateur Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) players. Design and method: A quantitative study using a pre-/post-intervention study design assessed nutritional knowledge, food preparation skills, cooking skills confidence, attitudes towards nutrition, and future diet and food practices among GAA players ( n = 336) across the Island of Ireland who took part in a practical food skills and nutrition education workshop. Findings: The workshop was effective in improving culinary knowledge, skills and confidence. Post-session, in comparison with men, women were ‘definitely’ more confident in preparing the dish they cooked during the session ( p ⩽ .05) and in using a cooker to prepare a meal or snack ( p ⩽ .05). While nutrition knowledge improved for many participants, women knew ‘a lot’ more about the quantity of each type of food they needed to consume ( p = .013) and portion sizes ( p = .003). Most participants indicated that in the future, they were likely to try out other recipes (94%, n = 310), more likely to prepare a meal themselves (93%, n = 307) and make healthier food choices (92%, n = 304). Originality: Results indicate the benefits of an integrated nutrition education and food skills workshop in improving players’ knowledge of nutrition and increasing confidence in relation to food preparation and cooking. As gender differences were found across a range of key knowledge and confidence outcomes, future food and nutrition education programmes may need to be tailored to take account of this.