Food behavior of elementary school students after receiving nutrition education.

A nine-week nutrition education program for kindergarten through sixth grade was implemented and its influence on children's food behavior assessed using a pretest/post-test design involving children who were and were not exposed to the program. The food behavior response was mixed. Consumption of some food items, at post-test time, was higher among pupils exposed to the program, but that of other items was lower, and consumption of some items was unaffected. Responses to questionnaires by parents indicated that they perceived a favorable effect of the nutrition education program on their children's food behavior.