The purpose of the study is to evaluate an afterschool program to teach nutrition through basic cooking skills. This after school extracurricular program increases the students' confidence, knowledge, and skills for cooking as one of the first steps for dietary improvement. In addition to the life lessons students learn during this class, they gain self-confidence and become self-sufficient culinary experts that are capable of educating their siblings, parents, and social circles. This research project will test the impact this program has on nutritional knowledge, culinary efficacy, and nutritional choices made in and out of the home. The Pink and Dude Chef Afterschool Cooking Program was developed through STRIDE (Science through Translational Research in Diet and Exercise at California Polytechnic state University (Cal Poly) in San Luis Obispo, CA. Hypothesis: Middle school students participating in the Pink and Dude Chef afterschool cooking program will increase nutritional knowledge, culinary efficacy, motivation to eat fruits and vegetables, and fruit and vegetable intake compared to an attention control group.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
60
12 educational cooking classes: two classes per week for six weeks (2 hours each)
USDA Grand Forks Human Research Nutrition Center
Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States
Questionnaire on nutritional knowledge, culinary efficacy, and motivation to eat fruit and vegetables
Baseline and post intervention measurements through questionnaires.
Time frame: 6 weeks
Palm scans (resonance Raman spectroscopy) to measure cartenoids (indicator of vegetable and fruit intake).
Baseline and post intervention scans.
Time frame: 6 weeks
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