Group Nutrition Education Research Articles

Alimentação saudável na perspectiva multiprofissional: A experiência do Projeto “Saúde no Prato” desenvolvido na Atenção Básica

O projeto denominado “Saúde no Prato” teve inicio no primeiro semestre do ano de 2016. Portanto, objetivou-se com este relato descrever a experiência multiprofissional nas atividades de educação alimentar e nutricional e contribuir para a disseminação de experiências relacionadas a este modelo de intervenção na Atenção Básica. Trata-se de um estudo descritivo do tipo relato de experiência acerca da implantação de um projeto desenvolvido por residentes de Nutrição, Enfermagem, Serviço Social, Psicologia e Farmácia do programa de Residência Multiprofissional em Saúde do Adulto e Idoso do Hospital Universitário Professor Alberto Antunes da Universidade Federal de Alagoas, e com profissionais de saúde de uma UBS, onde é realizado o estágio em Atenção Básica da residência. O projeto foi desenvolvido em encontros com os profissionais e usuários inscritos, totalizando seis encontros semanais cujo formato padrão incluía a exposição do tema seguida de uma oficina culinária. Foi possível observar o sucesso do projeto ao longo dos encontros, pois as pessoas participaram de forma ativa, trazendo um feedback positivo através das mudanças de hábitos alimentares, mostrando que a educação nutricional em grupo constitui uma estratégia de fundamental importância para o enfrentamento dos problemas alimentares e nutricionais. Somados a esses pontos positivos, foram citados ainda pelos participantes: redução do peso, da pressão arterial, mudanças de práticas alimentares na família (redução do consumo de sal, açúcar, alimentos industrializados e aumento no consumo de saladas e frutas), maior cuidado na preparação dos alimentos, confecção de horta vertical em casa, maior participação dos homens na cozinha e maior dedicação às caminhadas.

Impact of nutritional education in groups in the improvement of eating habits in women

Introduction: the excess of ingestion of food that is rich in fat and/or simple sugars triggers an alteration of the nutritional state in women. Thus, nutrition can help in feminine life quality, for a balanced eating is necessary, that contains all the nutrients indispensable for the good work of the organism, associated to the regular practice of exercises. Nutritional interventions from group care aim to provide the patient an interactive and reflexive environment of learning, what makes possible the change of habits in a collective way. Objetive: it is a review of literature about the impacts of nutritional education in the improvement of women’s eating habits. Methodology: a review of literature existent in the data bases Biblioteca Virtual em Saude (BVC) and Scientific Electronic Library Online (Scielo) and Google Academico was performed. 15 publications between the years of 2010 to 2016 were selected for suiting the criteria of inclusion initially stated. Results and Discussion: the studies with obese women show good results when there is the use of eating reeducation practices, being that the loss of weight occurred with greater intensity when a hypocaloric diet and the group orientation were allied to the regular practice of physical activity. Another relevant aspect was the analysis of interviews revealing that these programs helped in changes in eating both in qualitative and quantitative aspects. However, some studies showed that women that had inadequate eating habits, after the intervention, presented an improvement in this pattern, except with respect to the consumption of fibers, which remained low. Conclusion: thus, the impact of the nutritional education activity collaborates to the improvement of women’s eating habits. Group nutritional education should, therefore, be encouraged, for it is of low cost and provides moments of discussions about difficulties, adhesion to the treatment, socialization and self-perceived improvements.

Evaluation of nutrition intake of football players

Introduction Despite football being the most popular sport in Egypt, most players do not know their needed nutritional requirements. The metabolic rate and energy consumption increased dramatically in football players. Thus, nutrition plays a significant role in improving the performance and the quality of life for these players. Objective This study aimed to assess the nutritional status of 50 football players aged between 15 and 19 years in Gomhorya Club – Menoufia. Participants and methods Dietary intake was evaluated for 7 days by using dietary assessment tools (24-h recall). This data was used to determine energy, macronutrients, micronutrients, and fiber. The weight and height were measured. Results The results have shown that the football players had a high intake of energy and macronutrients. The protein intake was between 15 and 25%, fat 25 and 30%, and carbohydrate was between 60 and 65% of daily energy intake, and showed that they had a lower intake of vitamin D, calcium, and zinc. Conclusion The football players need to correct their food habits by using group nutrition education, and this will improve their health and performance.

Educación nutricional grupal interactiva: logrando cambios duraderos en el estilo de vida

La educación nutricional interactiva grupal es un proceso a través del cual la persona se transforma a la vez que modifica su entorno, pues estimula la incorporación de estilos de vida saludables y la adherencia a tratamientos de enfermedades crónicas, lo cual mejora la calidad de vida de las personas. La autora explica las bases epistemológicas y pasos de un método educativo desarrollado por ella usando elementos de la teoría de aprendizaje constructivista y de la pedagogía crítica. El método ha sido utilizado y ha estado evolucionando por más de dos décadas en la Escuela de Nutrición de la Facultad de Medicina de la Universidad de Costa Rica y ha demostrado ser efectivo para lograr mejor adherencia al tratamiento pues logra generar cambios de actitud y que las personas interioricen sus recursos y motivaciones propias para el cambio. Este documento fue producido en el marco del Proyecto de la Vicerrectoría de Docencia Pry01-1366-2016 de la Universidad de Costa Rica.

Effects of nutritional education on weight change and metabolic abnormalities among patients with schizophrenia in Japan: A randomized controlled trial

ObjectivePatients with schizophrenia have a higher prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) than the general population. Minimizing weight gain and metabolic abnormalities in a population with an already high prevalence of obesity is of clinical and social importance. This randomized controlled trial investigated the effect of monthly nutritional education on weight change and metabolic abnormalities among patients with schizophrenia in Japan. MethodsFrom July 2014 to December 2014, we recruited 265 obese patients who had a DSM-IV diagnosis of schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder. Participants were randomly assigned to a standard care (A), doctor's weight loss advice (B), or an individual nutritional education group (C) for 12 months. The prevalence of MetS and body weight were measured at baseline and 12 months. ResultsAfter the 12-month treatment, 189 patients were evaluated, and the prevalence of MetS based on the ATP III-A definition in groups A, B, and C was 68.9%, 67.2%, and 47.5%, respectively. Group C showed increased weight loss (3.2 ± 4.5 kg) over the 12-month study period, and the change in weight differed significantly from that of group A; additionally, 26.2% of the participants in group C lost 7% or more of their initial weight, compared with 8.2% of those in group A. ConclusionIndividual nutrition education provided by a dietitian was highly successful in reducing obesity in patients with schizophrenia and could be the first choice to address both weight gain and metabolic abnormalities induced by antipsychotic medications.

Effect of Pre-Ramadan Education on Dietary Intake and Anthropometry-Comparison Between Two Groups of Diabetic Patients

AbstractBackground and aims: Fasting of Ramadan leads to changes in dietary habits, physical activity, sleep and time of drug intake for diabetics. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of pre-Ramadan education on dietary intake and anthropometry of two groups of patients.Material and methods: The entire cohort was divided in a group (G1; n=86) which attended nutritional education sessions and group that did not attend these sessions (G2; n=72). The protocol included three visits before, during and after the month of Ramadan.Results. Total energy intake of the G1 did not differ significantly between visits, unlike the G2. Patients in the G1 reduced their carbohydrate intake during Ramadan with 32.5g, compared to the G2 which decreased their consumption with17.2g. The intake of saturated fatty acids was significantly higher in the G2 (p=0.001) after Ramadan. The number of obese class 2 of the G1 decreased after Ramadan, however for the G2, the number increased. The waist-to-hip ratio and the body fat (%) were unchanged between the three periods.Conclusion. The management of diabetes should be multidisciplinary to ensure better continuity of care. Specialized and individual educational actions must be concrete in diabetics wishing to fast.

EFFECTIVENESS OF A GROUP NUTRITION EDUCATION PROGRAM AS A STRATEGY FOR OVERWEIGHT AND OBESITY CONTROL

This study was aimed at verifying the effectiveness of a group nutrition education program in improving the nutritional status of overweight/obese individuals who were assessed as participants in a multidisciplinary university extension project entitled Interdisciplinary Treatment of Eating Disorders and Obesity - TITAO. The project is linked to a community university in the State of Santa Catarina, Brazil, who participated in the meetings. To check the effectiveness of the intervention, anthropometric variables (weight, height and waist circumference) were collected before and after the intervention. The sample consisted of 25 participants, predominantly females (92%), with a mean age of 49 years. After three months of participation in the project, it was found that 88% of the sample lost weight: 2 kg on average, and 96% of the sample had an average reduction of 3.5 cm in waist circumference. Health education and group nutritional counseling are effective strategies for weight loss, thus improving the participants' quality of life. DOI: 10.12957/demetra.2017.28677

Knowledge and Attitudes about Sports Nutrition in Collegiate Athletes

Participants will describe the gaps in knowledge and attitudes towards sports nutrition by members of the men's and women's basketball teams at universities with and without nutrition education available on-campus and which method of nutrition education (group counseling education, Twitter education, or grocery store tour) contributes to the biggest increase in nutrition knowledge and attitudes.

Effect of nutrition education and dairy group membership on nutrition knowledge, practices and diet quality for rural Kenyan farm women

The typical high-starch, low diversity diet in developing countries is associated with undernutrition, morbidity and mortality. Previous research with households in Mukurwe-ini Division (Central Kenya) found that members of a community-based dairy development group were more food secure and had higher intake of certain micronutrients compared with non-members; however, the prevalence of inadequate intake of multiple micronutrients was high among all women. A nutrition education intervention was developed to enhance women’s nutrition knowledge and food skills to ultimately improve diet quality and micronutrient intakes for women and their families. In addition, it was proposed that the intervention effects would be greater for dairy group members. The Mukurwe-ini study group consisted of 88 women in four dairy membership-duration categories (n=4 x 22) and non-member women (n=23). The study group was previously selected using chain referral sampling. For the intervention, women from each duration-group and non-member women were randomly allocated to intervention (n=55) and control (n=56) groups. Nutrition knowledge and dietary intake (24-hour recall) data were collected from all women over three weeks immediately prior to the intervention (baseline) and again, six months post-intervention, in individual face-to-face interviews. The intervention encouraged food-based strategies to improve intake of vitamin A, iron and zinc and was developed and delivered in collaboration with a Kenyan dietitian. WFood2 was used to compute food and nutrient intakes, dietary diversity and the phytate:zinc molar ratio. Descriptive statistics and linear and logistic regressions analyses were performed using Stata10. Independent of dairy-group membership, a larger proportion of intervention group women, compared to control group women, had the targeted nutrition knowledge and practiced the strategies to improve intake of vitamin A (76% vs 67%, respectively) and zinc and iron (soaked beans and maize 80% vs 13%; avoided tea with meals 67 % vs 5%, respectively). A positive effect of the intervention on dietary diversity was dependent on dairy-group membership status. Positive intervention effects on intake of vitamin A and C were found for non-member women. This study provided evidence that certain intervention effects were dependent on poverty reduction and that all women were able to make positive dietary changes when informed. There is a need to examine longerterm impacts of nutrition education interventions and to explore effective methods to disseminate nutrition information and food-based strategies. Key words : nutrition intervention, micronutrients, food-based strategy, rural, women, dairy, smallholder farmer

Growing Healthy Kids: Feasibility of a Garden-Based Nutrition Education Intervention for Low-Resource Families

To determine the feasibility and acceptability of a theory-driven and evidence-based summer nutrition education and feeding program for low-resource families in the Midwest. A 10-week feasibility pilot was completed in the summer of 2016 targeting children, ages 8-11 years, and their parent/adult caregivers (PAC) from low-resource communities (as defined by school SNAP-eligibility). Program components included: group nutrition education and cooking demonstrations led by Cooperative Extension Agents; weekly produce harvesting at a rural and an urban community garden; and remote motivational interviewing coaching (e-MIC) facilitated by trained registered dietitians. Feasibility and acceptability were measured by weekly child/PAC attendance logs, pre- to post- behavior surveys, post-program evaluations, and PAC engagement logs recorded by the e-MIC. A total of 30 children/PAC's were recruited during a 3-week period. Group class and harvesting retention were >85%. Further, over 65% of PACs actively engaged with the e-MIC. Post-programmatic surveys for the children documented improvements in consumption of fruits and vegetables. PAC surveys showed improved utilization of MyPlate for meal planning, greater confidence in eating healthy on a budget, increased family exposure to new produce, and more adventurous eating among the family. The results of this pilot support the feasibility and acceptability of a comprehensive garden-based nutrition education and feeding program for low-resource families. Future studies will focus on efficacy.

A social cognitive theory-based programme for eating patterns and sedentary activity among overweight adolescents in Makassar, South Sulawesi : a cluster randomised controlled trial.

Social cognitive theory provides the opportunity for program development to enhance healthy personal behvioural characteristics. We devised study to employ social cognitive theory to reduce snacking habits and sedentary activity among overweight adolescents . Eight junior high schools in Makassar city were randomly assigned as intervention and control schools. A total of 238 overweight students aged 11-15 years (BMI z-score >=1 SD, according to a 2007 report from the WHO) were recruited. Adolescents from the intervention schools attended 12 weekly 75-min nutrition education group sessions, which focused on behavioural modification assisted by trained facilitators; furthermore, their parents received weekly nutrition education leaflets. Adolescents from the control schools, but not their parents, received leaflets on evidenced-based nutrition information. The BMI z-scores, waist circumference, snacking habits, sedentary activity, and the adolescents' self-efficacy data were assessed prior to and after 3 months of intervention. The outcomes were analysed on an intent-to-treat basis. Compared with the control group, the intervention group showed a higher reduction in BMI z-scores (-0.08; p<0.05) and waist circumference (-1.5; p<0.05) at 3 months. Significant between-group differences were also observed for decreased snacking habits, but not for sedentary activity. Additionally, the programme improved self-efficacy for reducing these behaviours. Mean compliance and satisfaction with the programme were 95% and 92%, respectively. These high reduction rates suggest that the programme is promising and may address the problem of overweightness in adolescents. Additional studies are required to develop the programme in community settings.

The Effects of Intensive Nutrition Education on Late Middle-Aged Adults with Type 2 Diabetes.

Objective: Many patients with type 2 diabetes find it difficult to maintain good glycemic control. Undesirable glycemic control occurs greatly due to deficiencies of nutritional knowledge and difficulty in obtaining dietary prescriptions. The late middle-aged and elder individuals are the main populations that are affected by type 2 diabetes. The main purpose of this study was to investigate whether intensive nutrition education would make benefits for late middle-aged patients with type 2 diabetes. Method: 196 patients between 50 to 65 years old meeting type 2 diabetes criteria and eligible for the program were included in a single-blinded, 30-day centralized management of an education program in China. Participants in the program were randomly divided into a usual nutrition education group or an intensive nutrition education group. The usual nutrition education group was used as a control group and received only basic health advice and principles of diabetic diets at the beginning and the end of the study. Participants in the intensive nutrition education group were arranged to receive intensive nutritional lectures about diabetes for 30 days. The primary outcomes were the changes in weight, body mass index (BMI), fasting plasma glucose (FPG), 2-h postprandial plasma glucose (PG), glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), total glycerin (TG), total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c). Results: After 30 days of intervention, FPG, PG, and HbA1c in the treatment group decreased significantly than the control group (p < 0.05). HbA1c reduced significantly by 0.6% in the intervention group. No significant differences in the change of blood lipids were observed between groups. However, TG, TC, and HDL-c made improvements compared with the baseline in the experimental group. Both groups had a reduction in weight and BMI within groups, especially in intensive nutrition education group. However, there was no statistical significance between groups. Conclusions: Intensive nutrition education has significant effects on blood glucose control in late middle-aged adults with type 2 diabetes. Intensive education can cultivate good diet habits and increase physical activity, which are important for diabetes patients in the short and long terms. These findings may contribute to improving education methodology and nutrition therapy in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Long-Term Reduction in Sodium Intake After Online and In-Person Group Nutrition Education in WIC Participants

Long-Term Reduction in Sodium Intake After Online and In-Person Group Nutrition Education in WIC Participants

Evaluation of a community-based behavioral weight loss program in Chinese adults: A randomized controlled trial.

Weight losses between a group of participants assigned to a weight loss program based in the community [i.e., specifically the methodology used by Weight Watchers (WW)] and a Nutrition Education (NE) control group were compared in this study. In this 6-month trial, 300 participants with overweight or obesity were recruited from Beijing city, China, and randomly assigned to the WW or NE group. Weight, waist circumference, and biochemical parameters were assessed at baseline and 6 months. At 6 months, the majority of participants (79% for WW; 89% for NE) completed the study. WW participants lost significantly more weight than the NE group (-4.2 ± 5.6 kg vs. -0.6 ± 3.6 kg). More WW participants lost 5% or 10% of their starting weight [≥5%: 52.0% of WW participants vs. 11.3% of NE participants (odds ratio 8.15, 95% CI: 4.43-14.97)]; [≥10%: 26.0% of WW vs. 3.3% of NE participants (odds ratio 9.39, 95% CI: 3.55-24.83)]. In addition, WW participants reduced waist circumference by 3.9 ± 6.3 cm, while the NE group increased waist circumference by 0.6 ± 5.5 cm. The WW program was associated with clinically significant weight loss, demonstrating its potential value as an intervention strategy, based in the community, for the treatment of obesity in China.

Online and In‐Person Nutrition Education Reduces Sodium Intake: A Randomized Trial to Assess Knowledge, Self‐Efficacy and Behaviors in WIC Participants

High blood pressure is one of the leading causes of preventable morbidity and mortality in the U.S., and low‐income populations are at increased risk. The purpose of this randomized controlled trial was to examine the impacts of online and in‐person group nutrition education on changes in knowledge, self‐efficacy, and behaviors related to sodium reduction in a diverse sample of low‐income women enrolled in Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) between November 2014‐May 2015. The content of the lesson focused on ways to reduce sodium intake and promoted healthy low‐salt cooking options. 580 WIC participants from 3 Los Angeles, CA WIC clinics were randomly assigned to receive in‐person group education (n=294) or online education (n=286). Questionnaires assessing knowledge, self‐efficacy, and behaviors related to sodium reduction were administered before and after education, and 2 to 4 months later. T‐tests and x 2 tests were used to compare changes within and between in‐person and online groups. ANCOVA and GEE were used to assess differences in change between groups. Positive changes in knowledge and self‐efficacy improved between pre‐ and post‐questionnaire and were retained 2–4 months later for both groups (P&lt;0.05). Both groups reported significant improvements in behaviors related to using less salt in cooking, and eating less salt, processed foods, fast‐food, and restaurant foods (all P&lt;0.001). Overall, this study demonstrates that both online and in‐person group education can result in improvements in knowledge, self‐efficacy, and behaviors related to reducing sodium intake in a low‐income population. Findings support the use of innovative and effective nutrition education to low‐income populations to improve long‐term dietary behaviors.Support or Funding InformationThis project has been funded with Federal funds from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service through grant WIC NEI‐12‐TX to Baylor College of Medicine to the Nutrition Policy Institute at the University of California's Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources (formally the Center for Weight and Health at the University of California, Berkeley). The contents of this publication do not necessarily reflect the view or policies of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, nor does mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.

경남지역 요양병원 임상영양관리에 대한 중요도와 실행도 분석

The purpose of this study was to analyze the importance-performance of clinical nutrition management in convalescent hospitals. The research was carried out based on questionnaires administered from March to April, 2015 to 73 dietitians at 40 convalescent hospitals in the Gyeongnam area. There was a statistically significant difference between the mean scores for importance (4.01/5.00) and performance (2.95/5.00) of clinical nutrition management. The importance and performance grid analysis showed that participation in a nutritional management committee, administration of patients using a cooperation program among hospital departments, cooperation with a medical team on patient's nutrition status, nutrition initial assessment, nutrition care process for patients showing malnutrition, nutrition care process for tube feeding patients, management of a therapeutic diet, meal management using dietary slip instructions including a therapeutic diet, and explication of a therapeutic diet for patients scored high regarding importance and performance (doing great area). Medical records on patient's nutrition management, and nutrition counseling for requested patient scored low regarding the importance and high regarding performance (overdone area). Participation in medical rounds, personal nutrition education for patients, group nutrition education for patients, nutrition education for medical teams, development of a menu for therapeutic diet and standardized recipes, and provision of information on diet therapy for patients after discharge scored low regarding importance and performance (low priority area). Accreditation of convalescent hospitals and interest of medical professionals in clinical nutrition management were effective variables for the importance-performance gap of clinical nutrition management. In conclusion, the accreditation process and positive awareness of medical professionals with regard to clinical nutrition management had positive effects on reduction of the importance-performance gap in clinical nutrition management at convalescent hospitals. The strength of clinical nutrition management in the accreditation and development of an education program for increasing medical team or administrator interest in clinical nutrition management could lead to improvement of clinical nutrition management for elderly patients in convalescent hospitals.

Effect of Intensive Salt-Restriction Education on Clinic, Home, and Ambulatory Blood Pressure Levels in Treated Hypertensive Patients During a 3-Month Education Period.

The authors tested the hypothesis that low-salt diet education by nutritionists would lower blood pressure (BP) levels in treated hypertensive patients. The amount of urinary salt excretion and clinic, home, and ambulatory BP values at baseline and at 3months were measured in 95 patients with hypertension. After randomization to a nutritional education group (E group, n=51) or a control group (C group, n=44), the C group received conventional salt-restriction education and the E group received intensive nutritional education aimed at salt restriction to 6g/d by nutritionists. From baseline to the end of the study, 24-hour urinary sodium excretion was significantly lowered in the E group compared with the C group (6.8±2.9g/24h vs 8.6±3.4g/24h, P<.01). Morning home systolic BP tended to be lowered in the E group (P=.051), and ambulatory 24-hour systolic BP was significantly lowered in the E group (-4.5±1.3mm Hg) compared with the C group (2.8±1.3mm Hg, P<.001). Intensive nutritional education by nutritionists was shown to be effective in lowering BP in treated hypertensive patients.

Online and In-Person Nutrition Education Improves Breakfast Knowledge, Attitudes, and Behaviors: A Randomized Trial of Participants in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children

BackgroundAlthough in-person education is expected to remain central to the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) service delivery, effective online nutrition education has the potential for increased exposure to quality education and a positive influence on nutrition behaviors in WIC participants. Education focused on promoting healthy breakfast behaviors is an important topic for WIC participants because breakfast eating compared with breakfast skipping has been associated with a higher-quality diet and decreased risk for obesity. ObjectiveTo examine the influences of online and in-person group nutrition education on changes in knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors related to breakfast eating. DesignRandomized-controlled trial comparing the effectiveness of online and in-person nutrition education between March and September 2014. Participants/settingFive hundred ninety WIC participants from two Los Angeles, CA, WIC clinics were randomly assigned to receive in-person group education (n=359) or online education (n=231). Education focused on ways to reduce breakfast skipping and promoted healthy options at breakfast for parents and their 1- to 5-year-old children participating in WIC. Questionnaires assessing breakfast-related knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors were administered before and after education, and at a 2- to 4-month follow-up. Statistical analysisChanges within and between in-person and online groups were compared using t tests and χ2 tests. Analysis of covariance and generalized estimating equations were used to assess differences in change between groups. ResultsChanges in knowledge between pretest and follow-up at 2 to 4 months were similar between groups. Both groups reported reductions in barriers to eating breakfast due to time constraints, not having enough foods at home, and difficulty with preparation. Increases in the frequency of eating breakfast were greater for both the parent (P=0.0007) and child (P=0.01) in the online group compared with the in-person group during the same time points. ConclusionsOverall, this study demonstrates that both in-person and online nutrition education were effective in increasing breakfast-related knowledge in WIC participants, reducing breakfast skipping, and improving other breakfast-related behaviors, showing the potential usefulness for online education modalities for future WIC services.

Horticultural Activities Using Colorful Food for the Improvement of Emotional Intelligence and the Reduction of Unbalanced Vegetable Diet of Young Children

This study focuses on horticultural activities using colorful food to reduce diets unbalanced in vegetables and to increase emotional intelligence. Horticultural activities using colorful food vegetables were based on ʻHealth in Daily Lifeʼ in the ʻ7th Kindergarten Curriculumʼ; to improve the dietary habits of the young children, the program was also linked with a parentsʼ education program. The research was conducted with a total of 70 children from classes for four-year-olds in three child-care centers located in Seoul. The horticultural activities based upon nutrition education included activities using colorful food vegetables and nutrition education. For the nutrition education group, only nutrition education was provided, while neither horticultural activities nor nutrition education were provided to the control group. The study was conducted from September to December 2011. A total of twelve sessions were conducted once a week for 60 minutes each. According to the result, after the horticultural activities with colorful food vegetable were conducted, both the nutrition education group and horticultural activity & nutrition education group showed improvements in ʻNutrition Knowledgeʼ compared to the control group. Regarding ʻUnbalanced Diet Behaviorsʼ, the horticultural activities & nutrition education group showed meaningful decreases compared to the control group. Moreover for preference of fruits and vegetables, the horticultural activities & nutrition education group revealed meaningful improvements. In conclusion, colorful food vegetable horticultural activity could be an effective approach to resolve the imbalance of health caused by unbalanced diets as children who participated in the colorful food vegetable horticultural activities continued to respond spontaneously to the colors of vegetables and fruits and showed joy and kept voluntarily eating them.

Improving Food Choices and Nutrient Adequacy in Adolescents/Young Adults with Developmental Disabilities

Abstract Background Persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities (DD) have higher incidences of overweight and obesity than the general population and are currently underserved in health promotion programs. Restricted diets due to sensory sensitivity and physiological difference are often followed by persons with DD resulting in nutrient inadequacies, which may contribute to overweight and obesity. Closing the gap of healthcare disparities for persons with DD must start by increasing awareness of factors causing overweight and obesity, and development of strategies and programs to reduce incidences of overweight and obesity for persons with DD. Objective To investigate if implementation of an appropriately planned nutrition education program resulted in changes in food choices that improve the nutrient adequacy of the diet as a method of combatting or controlling incidences of obesity and overweight in persons with DD. Methods Pre-study, post-intervention questionnaires were administered to assess participants' nutritional needs, aid in program design, and evaluate program appropriateness. Parental group discussions and nutrition education lessons were conducted over a 6-week period. Three-day food logs were collected and analyzed pre-study and post-intervention using the National Cancer Institute's ASA24-2014 software. Results Results showed reductions of intake of fat, saturated fat, sodium, and sugar, and increases in intake of fiber, Vitamins A, C, and D, but there were no statistically significant differences from pre-study to post-intervention for any nutrient at the p Conclusions Qualitative data indicated program success; changes in nutrient intake were insignificant, supporting the need for further research in this area.