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Open AccessArticle
Effectiveness of the CATCH (Coordinated Approach to Child’s Health) Rainbow Program in Elementary Schools for Change in Fruit and Vegetable Intake
by
Henna Muzaffar
Henna Muzaffar
Henna Muzaffar earned her doctorate in Nutrition Science from the University of Illinois at (2012), [...]
Henna Muzaffar earned her doctorate in Nutrition Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (2012), where she also received post-doctoral training. She worked as a Research Coordinator at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign from January 2015 to May 2018. She received her bachelor’s and master’s in Nutrition Science from the University of Cincinnati (2002–2005). She completed her dietetic internship at Loyola University (2007) and has been a registered dietitian since January 2008. Currently, she is an Associate Professor, Interim Chair, and Eating Disorders & Obesity Certificate Facilitator in the School of Health Studies at Northern Illinois University. Henna Muzaffar specializes in community nutrition and public health research. She has worked with populations of various ages, diverse health and nutrition issues, and in different research settings. She has discovered a niche in conducting obesity related interventions in schools and health disparities research in the community. For professional service, she serves as the Chair of the Awards Committee of the Nutrition Education & Behavioral Sciences Research Interest Section of the American Society for Nutrition, Communications Committee Chair for the Nutrition Education for Public Dietetic Practice Group of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, and Nominating Committee chair for the Research Dietetic Practice Group of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
1,*,
Ashley Valinskas
Ashley Valinskas 2,
Ashley Werner
Ashley Werner 3,
Nora Collins
Nora Collins 4 and
Melanie Regan
Melanie Regan 1
1
School of Health Studies, Northern Illinois University, 209A Wirtz Hall, 370 Wirtz Drive, DeKalb, IL 60115, USA
2
Rockford Public School District, 1212 E. Algonquin Road, Schaumburg, IL 60173, USA
3
Rogers Behavioral Health, 9916 75th Street, Kenosha, WI 53142, USA
4
Mount Sinai Hospital, 704 Stacie Court, Naperville, IL 60563, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Nutrients 2024, 16(19), 3283; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16193283 (registering DOI)
Submission received: 30 August 2024
/
Revised: 17 September 2024
/
Accepted: 25 September 2024
/
Published: 27 September 2024
Abstract
Background: Nutrition, cooking, and gardening lessons individually and together have been shown to increase fruit and vegetable (FV) consumption in school-aged children. The CATCH Rainbow program incorporated nutrition education, cooking, and gardening lessons aimed at increasing FV consumption in elementary school-aged children and assessed changes in participants’ BMI, self-reported FV consumption, and skin carotenoid levels at baseline and post-intervention. Methods: Two-hundred and twenty-five 4th and 5th graders (mean age: 9.8 years and 52% male participants) at Genoa Elementary School participated in six cooking and six gardening sessions between September 2021 and May 2022. Each nutrition education session was 25 min long, paired with either hands-on cooking activities or gardening skills. At baseline and post-intervention, participants’ height and weight were assessed with a stadiometer/scale, and skin carotenoid measurement was taken by a Veggie Meter® (Longevity Link Corporation (Salt Lake City, UT, USA)). Students also completed the Block Food Frequency Questionnaire to self-report FV consumption at both time points. Focus groups were conducted with children at the end of the program for qualitative feedback. Results: paired samples T-test and regression analysis results indicate no significant decrease in BMI or significant increase in skin carotenoid scores from pre- to post-intervention. However, though not significant, there was an increase in self-reported FV intake by 0.4 servings. Additionally, the qualitative feedback was positive, as children mentioned benefits of healthy eating and expressed enjoyment for growing, cooking, and tasting fruits and vegetables. Conclusion: Results from this study can be used to guide future cooking and gardening programs for elementary school children. Time of the year when implementing these programs and collecting data may impact study outcomes due to seasonal variations in fruit and vegetable intake.
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MDPI and ACS Style
Muzaffar, H.; Valinskas, A.; Werner, A.; Collins, N.; Regan, M.
Effectiveness of the CATCH (Coordinated Approach to Child’s Health) Rainbow Program in Elementary Schools for Change in Fruit and Vegetable Intake. Nutrients 2024, 16, 3283.
https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16193283
AMA Style
Muzaffar H, Valinskas A, Werner A, Collins N, Regan M.
Effectiveness of the CATCH (Coordinated Approach to Child’s Health) Rainbow Program in Elementary Schools for Change in Fruit and Vegetable Intake. Nutrients. 2024; 16(19):3283.
https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16193283
Chicago/Turabian Style
Muzaffar, Henna, Ashley Valinskas, Ashley Werner, Nora Collins, and Melanie Regan.
2024. "Effectiveness of the CATCH (Coordinated Approach to Child’s Health) Rainbow Program in Elementary Schools for Change in Fruit and Vegetable Intake" Nutrients 16, no. 19: 3283.
https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16193283
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