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Examines label use behavior among high school-aged adolescents (N=90) to uncover gender differences related to these behaviors. Results show that students were five times more likely to rely on front label/nutrition claims than nutrient labels. Females were more likely than males to use front label/nutrition claims. (RJM)

Valid and reliable measures of nutrition knowledge are needed for program evaluation to develop predictive models of learning, food intake, and health behavior. The food label is an essential component of diabetes education. This study describes how an instrument designed to assess knowledge of food labels was pretested for reliability and validity. Five people assessed the test for face validity and rated the test at least 4 on a 5-point scale. The index of content validity was 0.76 based on a review of the test by five dietitians. The test was used to evaluate a nutrition intervention for women with diabetes using a pretest/post-test control-group design (n = 43). The coefficient of stability was 0.86 using the test-retest method among participants in the control group. The reliability estimate for internal consistency was 0.81 based on Kuder-Richardson formula 20. Item analysis found individual questions to be within acceptable limits. Participants in the experimental group showed significant gains in knowledge at post-test (p < .01), supporting the instructional sensitivity of the test. The approach used to assess the reliability and validity of an instrument was feasible and effective and is recommended prior to implementing a test for outcome evaluation.

Objective To evaluate an educational intervention about the food label designed specifically for women with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Design A pretest-posttest control group design. Participants received random group assignment. Subjects/setting Forty-three women aged 40 to 60 years with type 2 diabetes living in a rural community in Pennsylvania participated. Forty participants (93%) completed the program. Intervention Nine weekly group sessions were developed on the basis of findings from previous research among this sample. Principles from Ausubel's learning theory were also incorporated into program design and evaluation. Main outcome measures The effectiveness of the food label education program on participants' knowledge was determined using a multiple-choice test designed to measure declarative and procedural knowledge. A skills inventory assessed participants' perceived confidence in using the food label. The validity and reliability of the instruments had been established previously. Statistical analyses Analysis of variance was performed to compare groups. Paired t tests compared pretest and posttest results. Results The experimental group showed a greater gain than the control group in total knowledge (P, Nutrition therapy is an essential component of successful diabetes management. Food selection affects the nutrient and energy content of the diet and the metabolic control of levels of glycated hemoglobin, [...]

Objectives. This study evaluated retention of the effect of a home-based, practitioner-initiated nutrition education model. Methods. Children with elevated low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels were randomly assigned to one of two nutrition interventions or to an at-risk control group. Intervention effects were evaluated 3, 6, and 12 months postbaseline. Results. The parent-child autotutorial group demonstrated significant increases in knowledge and, along with the counseling group, decreases in total and saturated fat intake. Also, the autotutorial and counseling groups retained a majority of their initial LDL cholesterol decrease. Conclusions: Knowledge of heart-healthful eating and dietary fat intake as well as dietary change can be affected and retained via home-based, practitioner-initiated nutrition interventions with hypercholesterolemic children, although some form of ongoing intervention may be necessary to produce lasting decreases in LDL cholesterol levels. (Am J Public Health. 1998;88: 258-261)

The use of an educational video and accompanying activities appeared to help children with high levels of low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) to reduce serum LDL-C levels, at least for the short term. Children aged 4 to 10 with abnormally high LDL-C levels were randomly assigned to a video autotutorial (88 children), dietary counseling with a dietician (86 children), or a control group receiving no intervention (87 children). Children were mainly white and from middle to upper-class intact families. At the end of three months, three days of data from food diaries were assessed, the child's knowledge was evaluated, and LDL-C levels were remeasured. Autotutorial children had three times the knowledge of counseling and control groups. Average amounts of total and saturated fat declined the same amount in both autotutorial and counseling groups, but the autotutorial group had a 10 mg/dL decline in LDL-C levels versus 4 mg/dl and 3 mg/dL declines among counseling and control groups., Objective. To assess the effects of a home-based, parent-child autotutorial (PCAT) dietary education program on the dietary knowledge, lipid consumption, and plasma low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) of 4- to 10-year-old children with elevated plasma LDL-C. Methods. "At-risk" children (screening total cholesterol, (TC), exceeded 4.55 mmol/L and average LDL-C from two fasting samples was between 2.77 and 4.24 mmol/L for boys or 2.90 and 4.24 mmol/L for girls) were randomized to the PCAT program (N = 88), for dietary counseling with a registered dietitian (N = 86), or to an at-risk control group (N = 87). Dietary knowledge, diet, and LDL-C of these groups were assessed at baseline and after the educational period (3-month follow-up). The knowledge and diet of a not-at-risk (TC below 4.22 and 4.34 mmol/L for boys and girls, respectively) control group (N = 81) was also assessed and compared with that of the at-risk control group. Results. At the 3-month follow-up, the PCAT children&apos;s knowledge scores had increased three times more than those of the counseling and at-risk control groups (P

Drawing from a number of qualitative studies, a set of basic principles is presented for development of sound, effective nutrition education material. First, research is needed each and every time a new intervention or materials development project is initiated. This research should include formative, process, and outcome testing. Second, reality checks are needed. Programs and materials need to be tested in the settings and for the purpose for which they are intended. Third, messages need to be tailored to the audience. Certain concepts, such as the Dietary Guidelines, may be more or less universal, but the actual educational process and materials need to be tailored to specific target groups. Generic messages do not work. Sound scientific methodology is readily available as well as empirical principles to guide in the development and testing of nutrition education programs and materials, but each new intervention must be tested because there is always a creative element involved. Research will be ineffective, however, unless the right questions are asked and the right people (usually requiring a multidisciplinary team) are used to find the answer. J. Nutr. 124: 1808S-1812S, 1994. INDEXING KEY WORDS: * formative research * nutrition education * qualitative research

Because health beliefs and concepts develop early in life, Natapoff (1) and several expert groups (2-5) have recommended that health education begin in early childhood. At present, however, few data [...]

Two recent articles have reported the use of focus groups in nutrition education research [1,2]. The purpose of this article is to describe the methods used more fully so that [...]

According to the theory of meaningful learning, a person tends to act towards things according to the meaning things have for that individual. Therefore, athletes should apply nutrition knowledge to their eating habits to the extent that this knowledge is meaningful to them. The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine the meanings given to training and the role of eating/nutrition as a part of training in a sample of high school distance runners. Using instruments that were pilot tested previously, data were collected for this study from twenty-seven high school distance runners from one high school. Each participant completed both a qualitative interview designed to probe the athlete's concepts of training and eating and a traditional fifty-question multiple choice knowledge test. The previously validated knowledge test was included to cross-check the interview data and to provide some basis for comparing the sample to others reported in the literature. A questionnaire for demographic and training data was also administered. Results showed that the more complex the athletes' concept of training, the more complex was their concept of eating in the context of training. 'Running' and 'practice' were the most meaningful training concepts. 'Coach' was the concept most often linked to eating in the context of training. However, concepts that are common in sports nutrition materials (e.g., 'goal-setting' and 'races/meets') were less meaningful to this group. Nutrition knowledge was poor. These results imply that educators may need to re-examine their approach in order to make their message more applicable to adolescent athletes.

M is for motivator. E is for educator. N is for networker. T is for teacher. O is for organizer. R is for responder. Mentoring is a popular topic these [...]

The study examined family interaction patterns related to food and nutrition and parents' attitudes toward the importance of nutrition and compared interaction patterns and attitudes of parents participating in a nutrition education program (self-selected) to a cross-sectional sample of parents. It also assessed differences according to educational level, income, and mother's employment status. Income and education levels were higher for the self-selected sample. Parents from the self-selected sample had higher attitude scores and interaction behavior scores than those in the cross-sectional sample. Ninety-five percent of mothers and 83% of fathers with young children in the cross-sectional sample ate the evening meal together. Parents who participated in a nutrition education program reported discussing topics related to food and nutrition with their families more frequently than did parents in the cross-sectional sample. For both fathers and mothers, attitude and interaction scores differed with education level. Mothers who were employed part-time showed the most positive attitudes toward nutrition and the highest family interaction scores. Possible explanations for and implications of these findings are discussed. J Am Diet Assoc 89:509-512, 1989., Nutrition educators have recognized the role that parents play as nutrition educators (1-6) and have examined the need to include parents in children's nutrition education programs (3,7-11). The purpose of [...]

By Bernard Lyman, PhD. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold Co., 1988. Softcover. Pp. 189. Price $29.95. The purpose of this easy-to-read book is to present a general framework for a [...]