Patricia Britten

Fortification: new findings and implications

This article reviews the current landscape regarding food fortification in the United States; the content is based on a workshop sponsored by the North American Branch of the International Life Sciences Institute. Fortification of the food supply with vitamins and minerals is a public health strategy to enhance nutrient intakes of the population without increasing caloric intake. Many individuals in the United States would not achieve recommended micronutrient intakes without fortification of the food supply. The achievement and maintenance of a desirable level of nutritional quality in the nations food supply is, thus, an important public health objective. While the addition of nutrients to foods can help maintain and improve the overall nutritional quality of diets, indiscriminate fortification of foods could result in overfortification or underfortification in the food supply and nutrient imbalances in the diets of individuals. Any changes in food fortification policy for micronutrients must be considered within the context of the impact they will have on all segments of the population and of food technology and safety applications and their limitations. This article discusses and evaluates the value of fortification, the success of current fortification efforts, and the future role of fortification in preventing or reversing nutrient inadequacies.

Integrating Research into the Undergraduate Nutrition Curriculum: Improving Shoppers’ Awareness and Understanding of Nutrition Facts Labels

Abstract Undergraduate students in pre-professional, science-based programs need to develop an understanding of and facility with the multiple steps in the research process. Thus, we involved 21 nutrition students enrolled in either or both a nutrition education and a community nutrition class in a “real-life” research experience. Students assessed understanding and use of nutrition labels among a convenience sample of 145 shoppers in an urban Honolulu supermarket by asking shoppers in person either structured questions (n = 72) or a general question (n = 73) about the Nutrition Facts label. One-half of the shoppers reported using nutrition labels; 18% reported using labels “sometimes.” Frequency of use did not differ by age, but Caucasians reported using labels more often than all of the other ethnic groups. About 90% of shoppers correctly answered questions in a structured interview about serving size, calorie, and fat content and made correct comparisons between similar products. About one-third could explain what numbers in the “% Daily Value” column meant. The intervention materials (brochure, grocery list, and folder) were designed by the students and revised by one of the authors. Students conducted pretest interviews in person at the same store with a second convenience sample of shoppers (n = 212), who were assigned by day of the week to control (n = 110) or intervention group (n = 102). Students conducted post-test interviews by telephone at a time arranged during the pretest. Responses of groups were compared by analysis of variance. Only shoppers in the intervention group were more likely to define “% Daily Value” correctly after the intervention (p

Evaluating Diverse Weight Management Programs with a Standard Evaluation Questionnaire

Abstract Due to increasing pressures to document the effectiveness of educational programs, a project was undertaken to develop impact indicators and accompanying evaluation questionnaires for four of seven Dietary Guidelines for Americans. The results of field testing a 12-item knowledge and 16-item behavior change evaluation questionnaire for the “healthy weight” dietary guideline are presented. A pre-, post-, and 3- to 6-month delayed postassessment measurement design was selected to be used following completion of diverse multi-session weight management nutrition education programs designed by each participating state. Seven states in the Extension system collected and submitted both pre- and postdata; one state submitted pre-, post-, and delayed postdata. Results indicate small gains in knowledge and significant improvements in behaviors related to weight management in the broad categories of food behavior, exercise behavior, and behavior modification changes. However, a state by test interaction was identified for food behavior and behavior modification practices scores. States that showed no change for those measures tended to have higher pretest scores but the statistical results may have been affected by small numbers of participants in some states. This study suggests that use of a standard set of impact indicators, knowledge and behavior questionnaires to assess programming impact at different locations may be feasible. It would be important to consider programmatic similarities, such as program length and content, and differences in pre-entry data before aggregation of data occurs.

Healthy Eating on a Budget at ChooseMyPlate.gov

This article was written by Jackie Haven, MS, RD, deputy director; Colette Rihane, MS, RD, director; Patricia Britten, PhD, nutritionist; Donna Johnson-Bailey, MPH, RD, nutritionist; Mark Lino, PhD, economist; Elizabeth Rahavi, RD, nutritionist, all at the US Department of Agriculture Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion, Alexandria, VA; and Melissa Ciampo, nutrition consultant, Panum Group, Bethesda, MD.