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Protocol for a scoping review study on the use of teaching kitchens

High ultra-processed food (UPF) consumption is associated with weight gain, obesity, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular disease, all-cause mortality, and type 2 diabetes. "Food agency" refers to an individual's food preparation attitudes and capabilities within a given social and physical food environment. Although there is an association between the ability to prepare certain dishes and higher cooking frequency with lower UPF intake, it is still unclear if cooking and food agency influences UPF consumption due to the lack of research in this area. To date, studies of food agency have not included detailed dietary analyses. This cross-sectional study included 40 adults (73% female, aged 39±15 years, body mass index [BMI] 25.8±4.9 kg/m2) and aimed to determine the relationship between food agency and UPF intake. Food agency scores were calculated using the validated Cooking and Food Provisioning Action Scale (CAFPAS). Cooking behaviors and frequency were also collected. Dietary intake was assessed using three 24-hour dietary recalls with each item categorized by degree of processing using the NOVA classification system. Analyses included one-way ANOVAs between CAFPAS score quartiles [Q] and Pearson correlations between CAFPAS, cooking behaviors, and dietary intake. UPF intake was calculated in percent total calories and percent total grams to account for artificial sweeteners and other low calorie products that may be classified as UPFs. Low food agency was associated with a 14% higher UPF intake (% total calories) compared to high food agency (P=0.03). There were no differences between CAFPAS quartiles and UPF intake in % total grams. When age was divided into three categories, UPF intake was significantly lower in older adults (60+ years) compared to adults aged 19-39 years and 40-59 years by 26.4% and 29.1% respectively (P=0.02). When analyzed using bivariate analysis, lunch (r=-0.482, P=0.002) and dinner (r=-0.385, P=0.014) cooking frequency, frequency of cooking a meal from scratch or fresh ingredients (r=-0.320, P=0.044), and CAFPAS self-efficacy (r= -0.369; P= .019) were negatively correlated with UPF intake (% total kcal). These findings provide support for the possibility of reducing UPF intake through cooking interventions aimed at improving components of food agency such as problem solving, skills to create a meal from what is available, and cooking confidence. Future studies should include a larger, heterogeneous population to provide more insight into dietary differences between levels of food agency and expand the diversity of research in this area. Master of Science High ultra-processed food (UPF) consumption is linked to weight gain, obesity, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular disease, all-cause mortality, and type 2 diabetes. "Food agency" refers to an individual's food preparation attitudes and capabilities within a given social and physical food environment. Although there is a link between the ability to prepare certain dishes and higher cooking frequency with lower UPF intake, it is still unclear if cooking and food agency influences UPF consumption due to the lack of research in this area. To date, studies of food agency have not included detailed dietary analyses. This study aimed to determine the relationship between food agency and UPF intake. Food agency scores were calculated using the validated Cooking and Food Provisioning Action Scale (CAFPAS). Cooking frequency and behaviors were also collected. Dietary intake was assessed using three 24-hour dietary recalls with each item categorized by degree of processing using the NOVA classification system. Participants with low food agency had higher UPF intake in percent total calories compared to those with high food agency. There were no differences between food agency and UPF intake in percent total grams. Adults aged 60 and over consumed less UPF compared to adults below the age of 60. Participants with higher food agency were more likely to make a meal from scratch or fresh ingredients. As frequency of cooking a meal from scratch or fresh ingredients, cooking dinner or lunch increased, and CAFPAS self-efficacy scores increased percent total calories from UPFs decreased. These findings provide support for the possibility of reducing UPF intake through cooking interventions aimed at improving components of food agency such as problem solving, skills to create a meal from what is available, and cooking confidence. Future studies should include a larger, heterogeneous population to provide more insight into dietary differences between levels of food agency and expand the diversity of research in this area.

COVID-19 and its associated regulatory measures including lockdowns, curfews, and physical distancing norms have significantly affected individual's dietary and culinary behaviours. Although there is ample empirical evidence available on dietary changes within the Indian context, very limited evidence exists about the factors influencing these dietary modifications and changes in culinary behaviours during COVID-19 lockdown. Therefore, the aim of this qualitative study was to explore the views of Indian household food gatekeepers towards meal planning, food purchasing, and meal preparation during the pandemic and its associated lockdowns. A convenience sample of 34 female gatekeepers from the Mumbai metropolis participated in online interviews. Interviews were conducted in English and Hindi (then translated in English), audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. Underpinned by Template Analysis technique, transcribed data were analysed manually and using the NVivo software program. The interview structure guided the development of themes. The emerging themes included were: Increased household cooking; Involvement of children and male members in food-related activities; Experimentation in the kitchen; Adoption of meal planning skills; Increase in online food shopping; Bulk buying; Shortage of food items; Reduced consumption of outside home food; Increased variety of home-cooked meals; Increase in snacking and overall food intake; Determinants of food choices; and Family meals-a new norm. In the light of these findings, developing family-focussed, web-based nutrition programs to enhance gatekeepers' and their families' food literacy including declarative and procedural nutritional knowledge would be beneficial. The importance of organisational culinary behaviours such as planning meals in advance, shopping with a food list should be promoted to prevent hoarding and subsequently reduce strain on the food supply system. With a surge in domestic cooking, low cost nutritious recipes with the use of local and seasonal produce should be emphasized promoting healthy eating among the gatekeepers and their family members. The inclusion of food studies in the school curriculum will facilitate the development of culinary skills among children and youth. Also, there is a need for further research and surveillance to strengthen understanding of sustainability of healthy culinary behaviours practiced during the pandemic.

Background Nutrition education programs in schools have been effective in improving children’s knowledge and behaviours related to food and nutrition. However, teachers find it challenging to implement such programs due to overcrowded curricula. Integrating nutrition with core subjects such as mathematics could potentially address time constraints and improve the learning of both. The primary aim of this randomized controlled trial (RCT) is to evaluate the impact of a cross-curricular nutrition and mathematics program on primary school students’ portion size estimation skills. Secondary aims include impact on their nutrition knowledge, attitudes towards mathematics and evaluating the quality of the lessons. Methods Twelve Year 3–4 classes from Catholic schools in New South Wales, Australia will be randomised to intervention (n = 6) or control (n = 6) groups. Teachers in the intervention group will receive a professional development workshop and resources to teach 4–5 lessons on portion size and measurements across 1–4 weeks. Outcome measures include portion size estimation skills, nutrition knowledge and attitudes towards mathematics, with data collected during three school visits (pre-intervention, immediately post-intervention, 4 weeks post-intervention). Additionally, teaching quality will be assessed in both intervention and control groups and process evaluation undertaken using teacher interviews and student focus groups. Discussion This RCT uses an innovative approach to improve both nutrition and mathematics related learning outcomes among primary school children. It has the potential to impact teaching practices regarding integration of nutrition into curricula and enhance the implementation of nutrition education interventions. Trial registration Australian and New Zealand Clinical Trials Register ACTRN12619001071112 31/07/2019.

The COVID-19 pandemic and associated lockdowns had a significant impact on Australian food supply, with potential implications for food purchasing, preparation and consumption behaviours. Therefore, we explored Australian primary food gatekeepers' perceptions and responses towards their culinary behaviours during COVID-19 pandemic and associated lockdowns. We conducted online semi-structured interviews with 25 Australian primary food gatekeepers. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed using inductive thematic analysis. We found that the majority of food gatekeepers during the lockdown reported increased home cooking and experimentation in the kitchen, enhanced their food literacy such as cooking skills and confidence, meal planning and purchasing skills, and increased consumption of family meals. However, they also reported less positive outcomes such as increases in snacking and alcohol intake, baking less healthy foods and overall increases in food intake. There is a need to develop comprehensive nutritional programs for Australian primary food gatekeepers to increase their food literacy and confidence in food preparation and cooking. Future research could explore if these newly adopted behaviours positively impact primary food gatekeepers’ dietary behaviours and if these behaviours sustain over time.

Samoan food systems have undergone a dramatic nutrition transition, with dietary patterns changing concurrently with increased rates of obesity and non-communicable disease. Whilst policy action and environmental interventions play an important role in improving access to and consumption of healthy food, the success of these relies on a greater understanding of individuals’ food knowledge and behaviours. This study aimed to explore these behaviours using the construct of food literacy in an adult Samoan population. A cross-sectional interviewer-administered questionnaire of a convenience sample of 150 adult Samoans (≥20 years) assessed the four domains of food literacy: plan/manage, select, prepare, and eat. Participants generally plan to include healthy food (87%) and budget money for food (87%). The majority know where to find nutrition labels (68%), of which 43% always use them to inform their food choices. Participants were mostly confident with cooking skills, although food storage practices require further investigation. Over 90% agreed or strongly agreed that food impacts health, although understanding of the Pacific Guidelines for Healthy Living was lacking. Understanding the ability of Samoans to plan/manage, select, prepare, and eat food is an important consideration for future interventions aiming to assist this population in navigating the modern-day food system.

COVID-19 has led to dramatic societal changes. Differing movement restrictions across countries have affected changes in consumers&rsquo, food practices, with a potentially detrimental impact on their health and food systems. To investigate this, this research explored changes in consumers&rsquo, food practices during the initial COVID-19 phase and assessed the impact of location on these changes. A sample of 2360 adults from three continents (Island of Ireland (IOI), Great Britain (GB), United States (USA), and New Zealand (NZ)) were recruited for a cross-sectional online survey (May&ndash, June 2020). Participants completed questions in relation to their cooking and food practices, diet quality, and COVID-19 food-related practices. Significant changes in consumers&rsquo, food practices during the pandemic were seen within and between regions, with fewer cooking practices changes found in the USA. Food practices, which may put added pressure on the food system, such as bulk buying, were seen across all regions. To prevent this, organisational food practices, including planning ahead, should be emphasized. Additionally, while positive cooking-related practices and increases in fruit and vegetable intake were found, an increase in saturated fat intake was also seen. With the additional pressure on individuals&rsquo, physical and mental health, the essentiality of maintaining a balanced diet should be promoted.

Domestic cooking education programs are typically designed to improve an individual&rsquo, s food and cooking skills, although not necessarily diet quality. Currently, there are no comprehensive models to guide the planning, implementation and evaluation of domestic cooking education programs that focus on improving diet and health. Our aim was to address this through development of the Cooking Education (&ldquo, Cook-EdTM&rdquo, ) model, using the PRECEDE-PROCEED model as the underlying Cook-EdTM framework. A review of the food and cooking skills education literature informed the content of the Cook-EdTM model. Cook-EdTM was critiqued by experts in consumer behaviour, cooking and nutrition education research and education until consensus on model content and format was reached. Cook-EdTM leads cooking program developers through eight distinct stages, engaging key stakeholders in a co-design process from the outset to tailor programs to address the need of individuals and inform the development of program content, program delivery, and evaluation. A Cook-EdTM scenario applied in practice is described. The proposed Cook-EdTM model has potential to be adapted for use in domestic cooking education programs delivered in clinical, community, school or research settings. Further research will establish Cook-EdTM&rsquo, s utility in enhancing program development and in improving food and cooking skills, dietary patterns and health outcomes.

&ldquo, Food agency&rdquo, is one&rsquo, s ability to procure and prepare food within the contexts of one&rsquo, s social, physical, and economic environment. In 2018, we used Amazon TurkPrime to field two large national surveys in the United States (US) to examine food agency and several food- and cooking-related factors. The first survey (n = 1,457) was fielded in a national sample of US adults. The second survey (n = 1,399) comprised of parents of 2&ndash, 9-year-old children. Analyses included hierarchical linear regression to examine factors that explained variation in food agency and used Poisson and generalized linear models to examine the association between food agency and between cooking behavior and dietary intake, respectively. Cooking skills, food skills, and cooking confidence, attitudes, and perceptions explained a high degree of food agency variance. Higher food agency was associated with more frequent cooking of all meals, more frequent scratch cooking, and less frequent cooking with packaged ingredients among both adults and parents. Higher food agency was also associated with higher consumption of vegetables among both adults and children. Food agency encompasses a number of the interrelated factors important for home cooking and is a useful construct for understanding and promoting home cooking behavior.

BACKGROUND: Despite inconclusive evidence, the idea that a lack of home food preparation and skills is a limiting factor in achieving a healthy diet is widespread. Cooking skills interventions proliferate, and several countries now mention cooking in their dietary guidelines. The aim of this study was to determine whether substantial consumption of home-prepared food is necessary for high dietary quality by exploring whether individuals can eat healthily while eating little home-prepared food. The diets of these individuals were characterised, and socio-demographic characteristics and prevalence of obesity were also explored. METHODS: Cross-sectional analysis of UK dietary survey data with objectively measured height and weight and a 4-day food diary for each participant was conducted. A subsample (N = 1063, aged ≥19 years) with a high dietary quality (determined using a score derived from the Dietary Approaches to Stopping Hypertension (DASH) diet) was analysed. Within this, participants were grouped as either high or low home preparation based on the proportion of energy derived from home-prepared food. Regression models were used to determine whether and how those in the high and low home preparation groups differed in terms of socio-demographic characteristics, DASH score, energy intake, prevalence of obesity, and dietary composition. RESULTS: The low home preparation group included 442 participants, while 621 participants were in the high home preparation group. The low home preparation group were more likely to be older and white, and less likely to have a degree level education. After adjustment for socio-demographic characteristics, there were no differences in DASH score, energy intake or obesity prevalence between the groups. After adjustment, the low home preparation group consumed more fruit (30.8 additional g/day, 95% CI 5.5-56.1), more low-fat dairy foods (24.6 additional g/day, 95% CI 1.7-47.5) and less red meat (10.4 fewer g/day, 95% CI 4.3-16.6), but also more sugar (11.6 additional g/day, 95% CI 7.5-15.6) and sodium (107.8 additional mg/day, 95% CI 13.8-201.8). CONCLUSION: Home food preparation should not be presented as a prerequisite to a high quality diet. The public health community should recognise the existence of a set of food practices which allows individuals to achieve a healthy diet with little contribution from home-prepared food, and make space for it in the design of their policies and interventions.