Pilot Psychoeducational Intervention Model to Improve Nutritional Status in Low Resource Settings

Overview

The purpose of this study is to develop, implement and evaluate a psychoeducational intervention focused to improve nutritional status, specifically micronutrients, of mothers and caregivers of children between the ages of 5 and 13 years and their children through providing healthy cooking lessons in their communities.

Mexico's malnutrition problem goes beyond lack of food. Nutrition transition in our country has modified dietary patterns in a way that now we observe more and more a decrease in consumption of micronutrient rich foods, like vegetables, and an increase in consumption of high energy-dense foods with low content of micronutrients (highly processed foods). In Mexico, over 70% of the population presents an inadequate vegetable intake, with a higher prevalence in scholars (5 - 11 years), where only 17% of them consume \>50% of the recommended vegetable intake. A vegetable poor diet is related to malnutrition, poor cognitive development and low physical performance. Added to this, Mexican families have lost the tradition of cooking at home. It is well known that different factors contribute to a population's diet and cooking at home as well as eating with the family have been identified as fundamental factors to promote a healthy diet. Therefore, the aim of this psychoeducational intervention in nutrition is to improve nutritional status in families, particularly mothers and caregivers of children between the ages of 5 and 13 years and their children through providing healthy cooking lessons in their communities where the optimal preparation and use of local foods based on vegetables is promoted at the same time the importance of cooking at home and eating as a family is highlighted.