An evaluation of the Kinect-Ed presentation, a motivating nutrition and cooking intervention for young adolescents in grades 6–8

2015 ◽  
Vol 40 (9) ◽  
pp. 945-950 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara Santarossa ◽  
Jillian Ciccone ◽  
Sarah J. Woodruff
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Nutrition Education ◽  
Family Meals ◽  
Food Preparation ◽  
Young Adolescents ◽  
Southern Ontario ◽  
Family Meal ◽  
Meal Preparation ◽  
Family Dinner ◽  
Preparation Techniques

Recently, public health messaging has included having more family meals and involving young adolescents (YAs) with meal preparation to improve healthful diets and family dinner frequency (FDF). Kinect-Ed, a motivational nutrition education presentation was created to encourage YAs (grades 6–8) to help with meal preparation and ultimately improve FDF. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the Kinect-Ed presentation, with the goals of the presentation being to improve self-efficacy for cooking (SE), food preparation techniques (TECH), food preparation frequency (PREP), family meal attitudes and behaviours, and ultimately increase FDF. A sample of YAs (n = 219) from Southern Ontario, Canada, completed pre- and postpresentation surveys, measuring FDF, PREP, SE, and TECH. Kinect-Ed successfully improved participants’ FDF (p < 0.01), PREP (p < 0.01), SE (p < 0.01), and TECH (<0.01). Overall, goals of the presentation were met. Encouraging YAs to help prepare meals and get involved in the kitchen may reduce the time needed from parents to prepare meals, and, in turn, allow more time for frequent family dinners.

scholarly journals The Effect of Simple Suppers, A Family Meal Program, on The Relationship between Children's Food Preparation Skills and Their Involvement in Meal Preparation

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. 1360-1360
Author(s):  
Ashley Walther ◽  
Leah May ◽  
Amy Sharn ◽  
Miranda Westrick ◽  
Carolyn Gunther
Keyword(s):  
Head Start ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Pearson Correlation ◽  
Preschool Age ◽  
Family Meals ◽  
Food Preparation ◽  
Family Meal ◽  
Meal Preparation ◽  
Child Involvement ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract Objectives Examine the relationship between children's food preparation skills and their involvement in meal preparation with their caregiver among families participating in a Head Start family meals program (Simple Suppers). Methods Simple Suppers is an 8-week family meals program tailored to low-income caregivers and their preschool age child(ren). The study design is a single arm pre- to post-test, and the intervention is occurring during the 2019–2020 school year (fall, winter, and spring sessions) at 3 Head Start sites. Caregiver lessons focus on overcoming family meal barriers (i.e., meals on a budget, time saving strategies) through interactive group discussions and goal setting. Child lessons focus on age-appropriate food preparation skills through experiential learning. Children's food preparation skills are assessed via a 9-item questionnaire. Questions are situated on a 4-pt Likert scale (1 = strongly disagree (1pt); 4 = strongly agree (4pt)). Child involvement in meal preparation is assessed with a single item scalar question (0–7 times per week). Pearson correlation was used to examine the relationship between child food preparation skills and involvement in meal preparation. Significance was set at P &lt; 0.05. Results 19 families completed data collection for the fall session. 55.6% were low-income according to federal poverty guidelines, mean (SD) caregiver age was 37.6 (12.1), 94.7% were female, and 84.2% were non-Hispanic Black. Mean (SD) child age was 3.4 (0.5) and 47.6% were female. There was a significant association between the change in child food preparation skills and the level of child involvement in meal preparation with their caregiver (r = 0.62, P &lt; 0.01). Conclusions Preliminary data from this study demonstrate that children's food preparation skills influence the extent to which they are involved in preparing family meals with their caregivers. Funding Sources USDA NIFA CYFAR.

scholarly journals Beyond the Normative Family Meal Promotion: A Narrative Review of Qualitative Results about Ordinary Domestic Commensality

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (6) ◽  
pp. 3186
Author(s):  
Fairley Le Moal ◽  
Maxime Michaud ◽  
Carol Hartwick-Pflaum ◽  
Georgia Middleton ◽  
Isabelle Mallon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Family Members ◽  
Public Health Research ◽  
Family Meals ◽  
Positive Health ◽  
Mental Load ◽  
Family Meal ◽  
External Constraints ◽  
Research Fields ◽  
The Family

There exists a normative representation of family meals in contemporary Western societies which is promoted as imperative through public health programs, larger discourses and by some studies in the nutritional and public health research fields. Family meals, also called domestic commensality, are represented as convivial events and are associated with positive health and wellbeing outcomes but there is minimal evidence to show they are beneficial for family members and it is not known which aspect of the family meal could be responsible for these alleged benefits. This normative family meal image is based on a representation of the family as a peaceful unit exempt from external constraints. This narrative literature review of qualitative studies of family meals seeks to put forward the underlying premises of this representation and compare it with reports about actual practices. The results emphasize that eating together is still practiced and remains valued by family members, which is in contrast to discourses lamenting the decline of the family meal. However, the valorisation and recurrence of family meals depends on class, gender and cultural positions. There is a gap between the norm of healthy or convivial and achievable family meals, which can reinforce the so-called “mental load” and “emotion work” of those in charge of feeding the family and heighten inequalities within the household. In fact, there are many challenges to family meals which originate from external constraints or are inherent aspects of family life. The results from this review suggest that we should focus on family meals by taking into account the food work surrounding it and focussing on the interactional aspects of family meals. Ethnographic methods allow the researcher to observe the diversities and complexities of commensality as well as family dynamics and, in doing so, could provide more realistic representations of eating within the family.

scholarly journals Days Needed to Characterize the Healthfulness of a Typical Dinner Meal in Direct Observational Research: Mixed Methods Study (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allan Tate ◽  
Amanda Trofholz ◽  
Michael Miner ◽  
Jerica Berge
Keyword(s):  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Mixed Methods Study ◽  
Family Meals ◽  
Observational Research ◽  
Positive Health ◽  
Family Meal ◽  
Family Dinner ◽  
The Family ◽  
Outcomes For Children ◽  
Key Aspects

BACKGROUND Prior research around the home meal environment has demonstrated that family meals are associated with positive health outcomes for children and adolescents. Researchers have begun using direct observational methods to understand key aspects of family meals such as meal healthfulness and family meal frequency to explain the protective nature of family meals. Direct observational research, however, can be resource intensive and also burdensome for participants. Information about the number of days needed to sufficiently characterize typical meal healthfulness using direct observational research methods is needed. OBJECTIVE The current study aimed to produce guidance about the number of meals necessary to approximate typical meal healthfulness at the family dinner meal occasion in a direct observational, mixed methods study of the home food environment. METHODS Families were recruited between 2012-2013 from primary care clinics in the Minneapolis–St Paul metropolitan area (N=120). A total of 800 meals were collected as part of the Family Meals LIVE! mixed methods study. The Healthfulness of Meal Index was used to evaluate meal dietary healthfulness of foods served at 8 family meal occasions. Participating families were provided an iPad (Apple Inc) and asked to video-record 8 consecutive days of family dinner meals with a minimum of two weekend meals. After the meal, families completed a meal screener, which is a self-reported, open-ended measure of the foods served at the meal. RESULTS Weekend and weekday meals differed in their measurement of meal healthfulness, indicating that at least one weekday and one weekend day are necessary to approximate meal healthfulness. Single-day measurement mischaracterized the strength of the relationship between the quality of what was served and intake by almost 50%, and 3 to 4 observation days were sufficient to characterize typical weekly meal healthfulness (<i>r</i>=0.94; <i>P</i>&lt;.001). CONCLUSIONS Relatively few direct observational days of family meals data appear to be needed to approximate the healthfulness of meals across 1 week. Specifically, 1 weekday and 1 weekend observation are needed, including a total of 3 to 4 days of direct observational meal data. These findings may inform future direct observational study designs to reduce both research costs and participant burden in assessing features of the meal environment.

scholarly journals Family Meals, Conviviality and the Mediterranean Diet among Families with Adolescents

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (5) ◽  
pp. 2499
Author(s):  
Andrea de la Torre-Moral ◽  
Sergi Fàbregues ◽  
Anna Bach-Faig ◽  
Albert Fornieles-Deu ◽  
F. Xavier Medina ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Diet ◽  
Eating Habits ◽  
Family Meals ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Family Meal ◽  
Food Pattern ◽  
Mediterranean Countries ◽  
The Family ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
Meal Composition

Two aspects that characterize the Mediterranean diet (MD) are “what” and “how” we eat. Conviviality relates to “how” we eat and to the pleasure of sharing meals with significant people. The most studied concept is “family meals”, which includes conviviality, which involves “enjoying” family meals. Given the lack of research on convivial family meals in Mediterranean countries, the purpose of this qualitative study was to analyze the family meal representations and practices of families with 12- to 16-year-old adolescents to assess whether they responded to a pattern of conviviality, and to examine their association with MD adherence. Twelve semi-structured interviews were conducted and food frequency and family meal questionnaires were administered. A food pattern analysis was carried out and digital photos of meals were analyzed to examine eating habits and meal composition, respectively. The findings showed that parents believed family meals are a space for socialization and communication. Items relating to the conviviality of family meals identified in the study were meal frequency, meals at the table, lack of digital distractions, pleasant conversations, and time spent on family meals. Attention should be paid to conviviality in Mediterranean families when designing multi-approach strategies to promote healthy eating among adolescents.

scholarly journals Home food environment and associations with weight and diet among U.S. adults: a cross-sectional study

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle C. Kegler ◽  
April Hermstad ◽  
Regine Haardörfer
Keyword(s):  
Food Environment ◽  
Fruits And Vegetables ◽  
Vegetable Intake ◽  
National Sample ◽  
Family Meals ◽  
Fruit And Vegetable Intake ◽  
Fruit And Vegetable ◽  
Home Food Environment ◽  
Meal Preparation ◽  
Home Food

Abstract Background The home provides the physical and social context for the majority of eating behaviors for U.S. adults. This study describes eleven dimensions of the home food environment among a national sample of U.S. adults and identifies which are associated with diet quality and overweight/obesity. Methods A national sample of U.S. adults ages 18 to 75 was recruited from an online survey panel. Respondents (n = 4942) reported on foods available in the home, including 1) fruit and vegetables, 2) salty snacks/sweets, 3) less healthy beverages, as well as 4) food placement, 5) shopping practices for fruits and vegetables, 6) food preparation, 7) portion control methods, 8) family meals from restaurants, 9) family household practices around TV and eating, 10) presence of a TV in the dining area, and 11) ownership of a scale. Self-reported height and weight, fruit and vegetable intake, and percent calories from fat were also assessed. Results Mean household size was 2.6, 32.7% had children in the home, and 23.1% lived alone. The majority were White (67.7%), with 12.3% Black and 14.3% Hispanic. Mean age was 44.4 and 48.3% were men. In multivariable models, seven features of the home food environment were associated with meeting the recommended fruit and vegetable intake guidelines, with food placement, meal preparation, frequency of shopping for fruit, and a greater variety of fruits and vegetables available in the home most strongly associated. Eight of 11 features were associated with percent energy from fat, including restaurant food for family meals, salty snacks and sweets availability, less healthy beverages availability, food placement, meal preparation, frequency of shopping for fruit, family eating with the TV on, and having a TV in the dining area. More diverse fruit and vegetable availability was associated with lower odds of overweight/obesity, and more frequent family eating while watching TV was associated with increased odds of overweight/obesity. Conclusion Targeting these dimensions of the home food environment may be a promising approach for future intervention research.

scholarly journals Public health nutrition in Afghanistan: policies, strategies and capacity-building: current scenario and initiatives

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jyoti Sharma ◽  
Homayoun Ludin ◽  
Monika Chauhan ◽  
Sanjay Zodpey
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Nutrition Education ◽  
Child Nutrition ◽  
Institutional Environment ◽  
Scale Up ◽  
Critical Issue ◽  
Noncommunicable Diseases ◽  
Public Health Nutrition ◽  
Weak Institutions ◽  
Training Programmes

Background: Afghanistan is grappling with high burden of malnutrition in women and children and a rising burden of noncommunicable diseases. Aims: A narrative review was conducted with the aim of mapping current nutrition policies and capacity development initiatives to assess policy and the institutional environment and identify gaps and opportunities. Methods: A comprehensive, broad based search was conducted, including databases and websites and policy and programme documents. Results: The policy focuses on multisectoral efforts to address nutrition challenges; however; implementation of nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive interventions is not delivered uniformly at the community level due to continued conflict situations and geographic inaccessibility, lack of availability of trained human resources and weak institutions. There is limited evidence on the effectiveness of nutrition programmes in Afghanistan. Limited policy provisions are available to address nutrition issues due to the rising burden of noncommunicable diseases, urbanization and changing dietary patterns. The shortage of skilled nutritional professionals is a critical issue. Lack of institutional capacity, educational standards and accreditation mechanism poses major challenges. Ongoing training programmes are fragmented and fail to meet the requirements of a professional nutrition workforce. Conclusion: The findings highlight that well-structured policies and strategies focusing on maternal and child nutrition provide an enabling policy environment to scale up nutrition interventions.Evidence on the implementation of programmes is needed to aid policy recommendations. The lack of an institutional mechanism for professional nutrition education highlights the great need for action in Afghanistan for public health nutrition and education.

scholarly journals Characterizing the Effects of Extreme Cold Using Real-time Syndromic Surveillance, Ontario, Canada, 2010-2016

2017 ◽  
Vol 132 (1_suppl) ◽  
pp. 48S-52S ◽  
Author(s):  
Nancy VanStone ◽  
Adam van Dijk ◽  
Timothy Chisamore ◽  
Brian Mosley ◽  
Geoffrey Hall ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Acute Care ◽  
Surveillance System ◽  
Syndromic Surveillance ◽  
Cold Temperature ◽  
Syndromic Surveillance System ◽  
Southern Ontario ◽  
Threshold Temperatures ◽  
Ed Visits ◽  
Extreme Cold

Morbidity and mortality from exposure to extreme cold highlight the need for meaningful temperature thresholds to activate public health alerts. We analyzed emergency department (ED) records for cold temperature–related visits collected by the Acute Care Enhanced Surveillance system—a syndromic surveillance system that captures data on ED visits from hospitals in Ontario—for geographic trends related to ambient winter temperature. We used 3 Early Aberration Reporting System algorithms of increasing sensitivity—C1, C2, and C3—to determine the temperature at which anomalous counts of cold temperature–related ED visits occurred in northern and southern Ontario from 2010 to 2016. The C2 algorithm was the most sensitive detection method. Results showed lower threshold temperatures for Acute Care Enhanced Surveillance alerts in northern Ontario than in southern Ontario. Public health alerts for cold temperature warnings that are based on cold temperature–related ED visit counts and ambient temperature may improve the accuracy of public warnings about cold temperature risks.

scholarly journals Understanding the Impact of Peer Education on Self-Efficacy and Food Literacy in Food Insecure Students

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. 1303-1303
Author(s):  
Gretchen George ◽  
Melanie Gerdes
Keyword(s):  
Nutrition Education ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Food Selection ◽  
Food Preparation ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Food Pantry ◽  
Food Literacy ◽  
Food Pantries ◽  
Hands On ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Objectives Food insecurity is prevalent on college campuses. Many campuses have food assistance programs (e.g., food pantries, cooking classes, government support) to provide resources and education but research has identified that knowledge related healthy food selection, meal planning, food budgeting, and safe food preparation skills are suboptimal. The objective of this pilot study was to determine the most effective nutrition education model to increase self-efficacy, skill, knowledge, and food choice awareness in the food insecure college student. Methods Eligible university students (N = 54) were recruited and randomized to a three-arm four-week intervention. All participants received weekly food pantry items and pilot nutrition education curriculum through different application models; food demonstration and handout (FD, n = 20), cooking class and handout (CC, n = 14), or handout only (H, n = 20). The weekly one-hour CC was hands-on with tasting at the end. The weekly 20-minute FD was observation only with tasting at the end. Participants completed a validated pre-post survey. Results Using MANOVA, statistically significant (P &lt; 0.05) pre-post changes were identified in all scores (food selection planning, food preparation, food safety storage). The overall food skills score (OFSS), a combined measure, indicated a statistically significant interaction effect between study arms on the combined dependent variable, F(2, 51) = 5.37, P = 0.008, Wilks’ Λ = 0.826, partial n2 = 0.174. A follow-up univariate two-way analysis using Tukey pairwise comparisons identified non-significant pre-post mean differences for OFSS scores between CC (+44.29), FD (+16.05), and H (+20.30). Conclusions Nutrition education through a CC, FD, and H model improves knowledge, skill, and self-efficacy in food insecure students. CC have the largest pre-post improvements but tended to have more attrition. Universities with food pantries should include nutrition education ideally with a hands-on or observation component including tasting of new recipes and foods mirroring food pantry offerings. Campuses can use concise 4-week curriculum to maximize learning and self-efficacy while considering resources (staff, space, materials). Funding Sources California State University Small-Scale Faculty Research Grants 2019-2020 15 K.

scholarly journals Using Video Modeling to Teach a Meal Preparation Task to Individuals with a Moderate Intellectual Disability

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip M. Kanfush ◽  
Jordan W. Jaffe
Keyword(s):  
Video Modeling ◽  
Task Analysis ◽  
Food Item ◽  
Cognitive Impairments ◽  
Multiple Disabilities ◽  
Self Determination ◽  
Food Preparation ◽  
Single Subject ◽  
Meal Preparation ◽  
Literature Base

A single-subject study implementing an AB design with 3 replications was conducted with 4 adolescents having multiple disabilities, including moderate cognitive impairments, to demonstrate the efficacy of a video modeling and video-prompting intervention to teach a food preparation skill. Each participant was taught to prepare a different food item using a task analysis comprising 50 to 64 steps. Within 12 training sessions, each participant achieved criterion performance, completing at least 90% of their cooking task steps independently. Three out of 4 participants maintained their food preparation skill in a maintenance probe taken 6 weeks after instruction ended. The fourth participant completed 89% of the task’s steps independently during the maintenance probe. The findings of this study are consistent with those of earlier studies and suggest that video modeling may be a very effective and efficient method for promoting independence, participation, and self-determination among individuals with moderate intellectual disabilities. This study extends the literature base by focusing on longer, more complex meal preparation tasks than earlier studies.

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