School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Newcastle, Newcastle, Australia.
Am J Clin Nutr. 2012 Jul;96(1):102-10. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.111.030585. Epub 2012 May 23.
Inadequate fruit and vegetable consumption is associated with increased chronic disease risk and represents a considerable global health burden. Despite evidence that dietary habits track from early childhood, there are few published trials of interventions attempting to increase preschoolers' fruit and vegetable consumption.
The Healthy Habits trial aimed to assess the efficacy of a telephone-based intervention for parents to increase the fruit and vegetable consumption in their 3-5-y-old children.
A cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted involving 394 parents of children aged 3-5 y recruited through local preschools. Parents allocated to the intervention received printed resources plus four 30-min telephone calls targeting aspects of the home food environment associated with children's fruit and vegetable consumption. Parents allocated to the control group received generic printed nutrition information. Children's fruit and vegetable consumption was assessed by using the Fruit and Vegetable Subscale of the Children's Dietary Questionnaire, which was administered via telephone interview at baseline and 2 and 6 mo later.
Analysis of all available data showed that children's fruit and vegetable scores were significantly higher in the intervention group than in the control group at 2 mo (P < 0.001) and at 6 mo (P = 0.021). Sensitivity analysis using baseline observation carried forward showed an intervention effect at 2 mo (P = 0.008) but not at 6 mo (P = 0.069).
Telephone-delivered parent interventions may be an effective way of increasing children's fruit and vegetable consumption in the short term. Further investigation to determine whether the intervention effect is maintained in the longer term is recommended.
水果和蔬菜摄入不足与慢性病风险增加有关，是一个相当大的全球健康负担。尽管有证据表明，饮食习惯从儿童早期就开始形成，但很少有针对增加学龄前儿童水果和蔬菜摄入量的干预措施进行试验。
“健康习惯”试验旨在评估基于电话的干预措施对父母的有效性，以增加其 3-5 岁儿童的水果和蔬菜摄入量。
采用整群随机对照试验，涉及通过当地幼儿园招募的 394 名 3-5 岁儿童的家长。分配到干预组的家长收到了印刷资料，外加 4 次 30 分钟的电话，针对与儿童水果和蔬菜摄入量相关的家庭食物环境的各个方面。分配到对照组的家长收到了通用的印刷营养信息。通过电话访谈在基线和 2 个月和 6 个月后使用“儿童膳食问卷”的水果和蔬菜分量表评估儿童的水果和蔬菜摄入量。
对所有可用数据的分析表明，与对照组相比，干预组儿童的水果和蔬菜得分在 2 个月时（P < 0.001）和 6 个月时（P = 0.021）显著更高。使用基线观测值延续的敏感性分析显示，干预在 2 个月时具有效果（P = 0.008），但在 6 个月时没有效果（P = 0.069）。
通过电话进行的家长干预可能是短期内增加儿童水果和蔬菜摄入量的有效方法。建议进一步调查以确定干预效果是否在长期内得以维持。
