The purpose of this research is to test a comprehensive nutrition program developed specifically to target low‐income parents of young school‐aged children and determine whether the programme‐resulted in changes in parents' knowledge, attitude, self‐confidence, and behaviours related to both their and their child's nutrition in relation to fruit and vegetable intake.
This study used a quasi‐experimental pre‐test/post‐test design in which parent centers were selected to participate as either intervention or control sites. The primary method of data collection was self‐administered questionnaires.
The results show significant positive changes in parent knowledge, food behaviors, and home environment. No changes were observed in parents' attitudes; however, parent attitudes were high at baseline.
This work reinforces the importance of developing well designed interventions that specifically target the intended audience and intended outcomes.
This is one of the few studies that have examined the potential and value of nutrition‐focused intervention targeting low‐income and predominantly Hispanic populations with the potential goal of impacting children.
