Master of Public Health / Department of Food, Nutrition, Dietetics, and Health / Sandra B. Procter / There have been major shifts in the dietary patterns of people in the United States in the last four decades. People eat fast food more frequently, eating more convenience food products, and highly processed food. On the other hand, the practice of cooking from raw ingredients or cooking from scratch has been declining. The lack of cooking skills is one of the barriers of cooking from raw ingredients. Cooking skills are one of the important determinants of food choice. People who have higher cooking skills tend to choose healthier food options. There are many programs that aim to increase cooking skills and nutrition knowledge. One of them is done by EFNEP. Over the years, EFNEP has been helping the low socioeconomic population to reach nutritional well-being. Evaluation is an important component of EFNEP. There are evaluation tools in EFNEP including behavioral checklist and dietary recall that are administered pre and post program. However, these tools do not specifically measure participants’ cooking skills. A proposed short self-reported questionnaire is designed to measure cooking skills of EFNEP participants in Kansas. The questionnaire comprises of seven questions and has been tested to a representative group.

The primary aim of this research was to investigate cooking practices and cooking knowledge in a rural environment, as well as learn how the kitchen environment may reflect and/or shape an individual‘s process when creating a meal. Qualitative methods were implemented allowing for the data to be triangulated. The research methods used included a semi-structured interview, participant questionnaire, and videotaping dinner time meal preparations by the primary meal preparer on two separate occasions. Emergent themes about the role of the rural food environment began to develop surrounding how respondents procure food. The rural Vermonter relied on using home gardens, farmers‘ markets, and community supported agriculture to procure food. Another theme that emerged was the role of the primary meal preparer, or the ―nutritional gatekeeper.‖ The nutritional gatekeeper was a huge component in controlling family meals and portion sizes inside, and outside the home, and the ingredients used in homemade meals. All rural respondents had some degree of cooking skills that began at a young age. Their skills were honed over time by necessity and/or curiosity. Rural respondents had general nutrition knowledge that was evident by their definition of a healthy meal, and procuring the freshest ingredients. The kitchen space was less of an influential factor when creating a meal than initially anticipated, but was the processing center where procured food items were crafted into a meal. The theme surrounding the environment and local foods strengthens the 21st century‘s shift of what consumers are demanding from the Nation‘s food system. Understanding how nutritional gatekeepers choose to prepare meals, and the influence of their food environment on the meal thought process, may make the domestic home a platform to disseminate healthful cooking practices. This study concluded an ongoing ethnographic study investigating peoples cooking practices, and cooking knowledge in an urban (Boston metropolis), suburban (Burlington, VT), and rural (Franklin and Lamoille County, VT) environments as an implication towards health.

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Background: Childhood, adolescent, and adult obesity is a major health and economic concern affecting the United States and various countries across the globe. Obese children and adolescents are at a potential risk for developing certain chronic diseases as they transition into adulthood. There are community-based cooking intervention programs designed to increase children and adolescents' intake of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, whether these programs improve self-efficacy and perceptions related to food and eating behaviors is not currently known. Objective: The aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of Teen Cuisine, an Extension-based cooking program on self-efficacy with cooking and perceptions of their eating behaviors in a diverse group of adolescents across the Commonwealth of Virginia. Subjects: Students involved in the 4-H Teen Cuisine Program during the 2013-2015 academic years. Cooking Program: Teen Cuisine is a six-week 90-minute extension-based cooking program created by the Virginia Family Nutrition Program targeting adolescents and teens throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia. The program focused on kitchen safety and sanitation, knife skills, food preparation, and nutrition education. Measures: A survey was used to assess n=531 student's self-efficacy for general nutrition knowledge, food choices, and cooking skills as a result of the 4-H Teen Cuisine Program during the academic year of fall 2013 to spring 2015. Methods: Surveys were administered upon completion of the Teen Cuisine program to assess students' self-efficacy and perceived gains in kitchen skills, dietary patterns and preferences, and nutrition knowledge. Results: Teens that self-reported living in rural areas throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia perceived gains (p < 0.05) in an increased consumption of fruits and vegetables. Teens also indicated an increased frequency in cooking and a decrease in their consumption of soda/soft drinks. Conclusion: Overall Teen Cuisine was found to be effective in improving perceptions of curriculum specific health behaviors, cooking skills, food safety and sanitation, and perceived gains in self-efficacy in the kitchen. / Master of Science / Over the past 10 years, 4-H has delivered numerous childhood obesity prevention programs across the state of Virginia. 4-H Extension Agents expressed a need and for a curriculum targeting tweens and teens. Based on a national search, no programs existed. As a result, the Virginia Family Nutrition Program developed Teen Cuisine, a skilled and cooking based curriculum that focuses on nutrition education, food preparation and safety. In 2011, the Teen Cuisine program was targeted for low-income youth. The aim of this study was to create a culinary and nutrition education foundation to aid in the prevention of chronic diseases. Once students completed the six 90 minute lesson program, a posttest was distributed to students throughout the state of Virginia who participated in Teen Cuisine. Results were evaluated using the 4-H Common Measures Evaluation Instruments. Based on evidence from Teen Cuisine 72.1% of students agreed they consume more fruits and vegetables. While 73.0% agreed they drink fewer soft drinks. Students who successfully completed Teen Cuisine significantly improved their knowledge in nutrition education, physical activity, food safety and sanitation, acquired knife skills, and are now more conscious of their eating behaviors. Reinforcing the Dietary Guidelines and MyPlate, teens now have a road map to how their plate should look, and how to maintain a healthy weight.

Increasing fruit and vegetable intake is important to obesity prevention but children’s vegetable intake remains low. This study aimed to enhance parent vegetable serving behaviour and child vegetable intake through an 8-week theory-based family cooking program. Sixty-five families with children aged 9-13 (11.1 ±1.4) were randomized into a home activity program or home activity plus cooking workshop program. There was no significant increase in parent vegetable serving habits or children’s intake. Both interventions enhanced feeding practices (F (1, 63) = 42.09, p=.000, ɳ2=0.40) and reduced perceived barriers (F (1, 63) = 13.01, p=.001, ɳ2=.017). Children in the cooking workshop condition liked vegetables more (F (1, 63) = 3.87, p=.050, ɳ2=0.06) and had greater diet-disease awareness (F (1, 63) = 3.97, p=.050, ɳ2=0.06) at follow-up (statistic). Family engagement in cooking was successful in enhancing some psychosocial measures for both children and parents, particularly for those receiving cooking workshops. A low sample size and sampling bias may have masked other findings. / Graduate / 0570 / 0573 / dtrill@uvic.ca

Increasing fruit and vegetable intake is important to obesity prevention but children’s vegetable intake remains low. This study aimed to enhance parent vegetable serving behaviour and child vegetable intake through an 8-week theory-based family cooking program. Sixty-five families with children aged 9-13 (11.1 ±1.4) were randomized into a home activity program or home activity plus cooking workshop program. There was no significant increase in parent vegetable serving habits or children’s intake. Both interventions enhanced feeding practices (F (1, 63) = 42.09, p=.000, ɳ2=0.40) and reduced perceived barriers (F (1, 63) = 13.01, p=.001, ɳ2=.017). Children in the cooking workshop condition liked vegetables more (F (1, 63) = 3.87, p=.050, ɳ2=0.06) and had greater diet-disease awareness (F (1, 63) = 3.97, p=.050, ɳ2=0.06) at follow-up (statistic). Family engagement in cooking was successful in enhancing some psychosocial measures for both children and parents, particularly for those receiving cooking workshops. A low sample size and sampling bias may have masked other findings. / Graduate / 0570 / 0573 / dtrill@uvic.ca

abstract: Pediatric obesity is a continuing concern in the United States. Preventative intervention methods in the form of nutrition education, including hands-on cooking lessons may improve personal choices for healthy eating. This study assessed the effectiveness of Arizona State University’s Camp CRAVE, a one-week course promoting healthy eating and teaching basic cooking skills. Children ages 9-13years (mean 10.3years, n=31) participated in a pre- and post-test survey to assess if the one-week course would increase self-efficacy to cook at home and increase knowledge of nutrition. The course showed significant increase in the participants’ nutrition knowledge and preference for healthier food options. There was a significant improvement in the children’s confidence levels to prepare meals at home. Further research on family socioeconomic status and parental perception of cooking at home would be beneficial. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Nutrition 2017

Background: Child overweight and obesity are increasing public health problems and food habitsamong children are concerning. Healthy family food habits and basic parental nutrition and cooking skills are important for ensuring children receive an adequate diet. Objective: To explore the nutritional quality of 5-10-year-old Swedish children’s diets and associations with parental self-perceived cooking skills, awareness of nutrition guidelines, family cooking practices and demographic variables. Methods: A cross sectional online survey was responded by 72 parents. Nutritional quality was measured using The National Board of Health and Wellness’ Dietary Index. The survey also measured parental self-perceived cooking skills, awareness of nutrition guidelines, family cooking practices and demographic variables. Associations were tested with independent t-tests and Spearman rank correlations. Results: Mean Dietary Index score was 8.11, which indicates an unsatisfactory adherence to Nutrition Guidelines. Children’s food habits in this sample were better than in the national survey Riksmaten barn 2003, but intake levels of fruit, vegetables and fish was still below recommendations. Associations were found between children’s Dietary Index scores and parental cooking skills, nutritional awareness and frequency of child participating in cooking. No associations with demographic variables were found. Conclusions: Children’s diets are not in line with recommendations for 46 % of the participants, but appears to have improved since the latest national survey. Parental cooking skills, nutritional awareness and children participating in cooking more often was associated with better nutritional quality in children.The small sample size, participant heterogeneity and the recruitment method limits the generalizability of the results.

Individuals with Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) often need to be taught independent living skills in order to reintegrate into community settings. This study examined the use of video modeling to teach culinary skills to three individuals with TBI. Video modeling is easily accessible, inexpensive, and not reliant on an additional person to directly teach skills. For all three participants, video modeling resulted in increases in cooking skills using a task analysis created for each food item prepared. For one participant, the skills maintained over two weeks and generalized to a novel food. For another participant video modeling was insufficient in reaching high skills levels therefore a second phase utilizing reinforcement and corrective feedback was implemented. This phase demonstrated with the additional component including reinforcement and corrective feedback, the third participant reached high skill levels.

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