Weight management is often a challenge for past-participants of weight loss programmes, especially when continuity-of-care is lacking. Studies have also shown that culinary nutrition interventions have promise in promoting dietary behaviour change. This study aimed to develop and implement a culinary nutrition educational intervention and evaluate its short-term impact on mediators of dietary behaviour change for healthful weight management.

This mixed method, randomised controlled intervention study consisted of a six-week cooking and nutrition course involving primaily volunteer ex-weightloss programme participants. Data from the Intervention and Control group were collected via a survey six weeks before the course and six weeks after completion. The Intervention group also participated in two focus group interviews, before and after the intervention, to assess baseline characteristics and for evaluation purposes, respectively. Pre-post survey and post focus group data analyses assessed the intervention effects within and between groups.

Results revealed that the course had a positive impact on participants’ nutrition and cooking knowledge, food-related practices, shopping and cooking self-efficacy, and self-control. However, no significant changes were observed in healthy eating and cooking attitudes. Overall, findings suggest that culinary nutrition courses grounded in Home Economics theoretical and practical principles could bring about improvements in healthy eating behaviours.

This study explores the transformative potential of the CDC’s Prevent T2 NDPP online interventions in improving health outcomes. “NJ Empower to Prevent,” launched by Rutgers Cooperative Extension’s Department of Family and Community Health Sciences (FCHS), aims to prevent or delay type 2 diabetes by promoting healthier lifestyles.

Online delivery of “NJ Empower to Prevent” increases accessibility and helps facilitate lifestyle changes. Comprehensive literature review and program data analysis confirms that online platforms promote adherence to program elements, dietary adjustments, and physical activity guidelines, leading to weight loss and decreased diabetes risk.

Implementation of diverse strategies tackle engagement barriers: one-on-one meetings target specific challenges, fostering tailored plans. Multi-week group challenges and office hours aid discussions on nutrition, physical activity, and prevention. WhatsApp groups promote peer interaction, enhancing motivation, with further support through reminders and personalized messages via text and email.

Qualitative and quantitative participant data help assess educational and motivational methods for enhancing retention strategies. Some seniors’ struggles with online platforms suggest that in-person programs may be more suitable for them. Our findings are synthesized into actionable recommendations aimed at optimizing participant retention in the online Prevent T2 program, ultimately providing valuable insights to bolster the effectiveness of diabetes prevention efforts.

Food literacy has often been recommended as an entitlement for all schoolchildren. With this in mind, a study was conducted in Malta in 2022 exploring how food and nutrition (F&N) and food preparation and cooking (FP&C) were being incorporated in primary classrooms. An online survey was carried out with primary teachers who were invited to participate on a voluntary basis. Data analysis was conducted to produce basic frequencies. 88 teachers completed the survey. The majority were females, ages 23-45, working in State schools and with some Home Economics education. The sample was mixed for Primary teaching experience. 62% of the teachers were very interested in F&N and 46% were very interested in FP&C. Just over 70% were self-taught with regard to teaching F&N or FP&C to primary students. Most frequently covered topics were snacks, breakfast, packed lunches, fruit, vegetables, water, fruit smoothies/juice, milk, food waste, food hygiene, shopping lists and food labels. Content was often integrated with Science. 87% of teachers had done classroom FP&C, typically bread-based products. Lack of resources and concerns regarding classroom management were barriers to FP&C. There is urgent need for an integrated food literacy curriculum for the primary level, supported by teacher training and resources.

Introduction: Indian adolescents exhibit poor dietary habits. There is limited evidence about the ways adolescents choose to eat healthy or unhealthy foods. This qualitative inquiry aimed to explore how Indian adolescents aged 10-19 years perceive foods as healthy or unhealthy.
Methods: Using a convenience sampling technique, adolescents were recruited from Tikari village, Varanasi, India. Through a social constructivist approach, 39 adolescents were interviewed face-to-face in their local language. All the interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. For the purpose of data analysis, the transcripts were translated to English. The NVivo program was employed to analyze the data thematically. Themes were extracted through both deductive and inducted approaches.
Findings: Out of 39 adolescents, 20 were boys. With the exception of one student (an early school leaver), all the other adolescents were studying between the 6th and 12th grades. The adolescents classified healthy and unhealthy foods based on the following six themes: (i) Food groups and nutrients; (ii) Health and immunity; (iii) Type of ingredient; (iv) Place and time of food preparation; (v) Packaging; (vi) Parental influence.
Conclusions: These perceptions of healthiness could be incorporated into future school-based food literacy interventions to promote healthy eating and culinary practices among vulnerable Indian adolescents.

This study aimed to investigate how gender, academic level, and field of study influence the consumption of ultra-processed foods (UPFs), consumption patterns, health status, and suggestions for reducing UPF consumption. Three null hypotheses were postulated for the study. Quantitative survey research design was adopted. A total of 240 undergraduate students in Ondo City responded to Ultra-Processed Foods, Consumption Pattern and Effects on Students’ Health Questionnaire (UCPESHQ). The responses collected from the study shall be analyzed statistically, using Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) at 0.05 level of significance. Major findings were that male and female students differ significantly in their frequency of UPFs consumption (sig. = 0.008), and clinical features (sig. = 0.020); that junior and senior students differ significantly in their frequency of UPFs consumption (sig. = 0.013); and that non-science and science students differ significantly in their frequency of UPFs consumption (sig = 0.027), and perception about the strategies to minimise the consumption of UPFs (sig. = 0.025). The study found that male, senior, and science students require increased nutrition education and intervention compared to their female, junior, and non-science peers. It's recommended that Nigerian universities consider student demographics in nutrition policy-making.