Journal Of Nutrition Education And Behavior, Volume 43, Issue 4, Suppl 2 (2011). pp. S152-S154.
Language:
English
Abstract:
Increases in the prevalence of overweight and obesity in children and adolescents are a significant health concern in the United States. Specifically, there is a growing body of evidence that obesity rates are higher among Hmong youth than the national averages for Asian or non-Hispanic white middle school-age children. Fruit and vegetable consumption has been associated with the prevention and management of overweight and obesity in children and adolescents, both in northern California and elsewhere. This article describes the use of the Harvest of the Month (HOTM) intervention to effect such changes. The authors implemented the HOTM program in a low-income, northern California middle school at which the students are primarily Hmong and White. The HOTM is a low-cost, turn-key program used in California schools to enhance student preference for and consumption of seasonal fruits and vegetables. The authors hypothesized that there would be significant differences from pre- to post-tasting in fruit and vegetable attitudes, preferences, and consumption patterns among these Hmong and white middle school students as a result of the HOTM intervention. Study results showed a significant increase of 0.3 servings of fruit from pre- to post- for Hmong and white students in the intervention group versus no change in the control group. This finding is in agreement with that from previous research showing an increase in fruit consumption of 0.3 servings after a multi-component nutrition intervention. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)