Joseph Laura S, Gorin Amy A, Mobley Stacey L, Mobley Amy R
1 Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Connecticut , Storrs, CT.
2 Department of Psychology, Center for Health, Intervention, and Prevention, University of Connecticut , Storrs, CT.
Child Obes. 2015 Oct;11(5):513-20. doi: 10.1089/chi.2015.0028. Epub 2015 Aug 17.
Novel interventions within child care settings are needed for childhood obesity prevention. The aim of this study was to determine the impact of a short-term nutrition education pilot intervention on preschool-age children's snack food choices.
Children ages 3-5 years (n = 49) from one child care setting participated in a short-term nutrition education intervention (nine 30-minute interactive lessons) taught over a 2-week period. Pre-post assessments included snack knowledge and snack preference questionnaires and an observed snack selection trial to allow children to choose between a healthy and unhealthy snack choice similar to the current food environment. Children's height and weight were measured and BMI z-scores calculated. Parental reports of demographics and child's food preferences were also collected at baseline.
Children significantly improved their preference of healthier snacks (p = 0.03) and the ability to distinguish them (p = 0.03) from other snacks. However, they did not significantly improve (p > 0.05) their snack choice between a healthy and unhealthy choice immediately after the short-term nutrition education program. Children who were younger (p = 0.003) or who had higher nutrition knowledge scores (p = 0.002) were more likely to select the healthy snack after the intervention.
This study provides evidence that a short-term nutrition education program improves preschool children's knowledge about healthy snacks, but does not translate to immediate healthier snack selections for all children. Future research should investigate the optimal duration of a nutrition education program in a child care setting and other external influences (parents, policy) most influential on snack choice and eventual obesity risk.
为预防儿童肥胖，需要在儿童保育环境中采取新的干预措施。本研究的目的是确定短期营养教育试点干预对学龄前儿童零食选择的影响。
来自一个儿童保育机构的49名3至5岁儿童参加了一项短期营养教育干预（为期两周，共九节30分钟的互动课程）。前后评估包括零食知识和零食偏好问卷，以及一项观察性零食选择试验，让儿童在类似于当前食物环境的健康和不健康零食之间进行选择。测量儿童的身高和体重，并计算BMI z评分。在基线时还收集了家长关于人口统计学和儿童食物偏好的报告。
儿童显著提高了对更健康零食的偏好（p = 0.03）以及将它们与其他零食区分开来的能力（p = 0.03）。然而，在短期营养教育计划结束后，他们在健康和不健康零食选择之间并没有显著改善（p > 0.05）。年龄较小（p = 0.003）或营养知识得分较高（p = 0.002）的儿童在干预后更有可能选择健康零食。
本研究提供的证据表明，短期营养教育计划提高了学龄前儿童对健康零食的认识，但并没有转化为所有儿童立即选择更健康的零食。未来的研究应调查儿童保育环境中营养教育计划的最佳时长，以及对零食选择和最终肥胖风险最具影响力的其他外部因素（家长、政策）。
