Evaluation of Recipes for Life Nutrition Education Program for Fifth-Grade Students

Abstract

Emerging research indicates that chronic illnesses exacerbated by obesity begin in childhood. While research continues to show that consumption of fruits and vegetables can lower rates of obesity, children in the United States often fall short of consuming the recommended daily intake of fruits and vegetables. Youth nutrition education and cooking education programs have emerged as proven strategies for promoting youth consumption of fruit and vegetables, and other factors (e.g., nutrition knowledge, food-related behaviors, food preferences, attitude toward cooking, and cooking self-efficacy) that mediate youth consumption of fruits and vegetables. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of the Recipes for Life program, a field-trip-based nutrition education program, on fifth-grade students. Results showed that the program elicited pre-post improvements in students’ content knowledge, cooking self-efficacy, and cooking attitudes.