A tailored multimedia nutrition education pilot program for low-income women receiving food assistance

This article describes the development and pilot evaluation of a tailored m ultimedia program to improve dietary behavior among 378 low-income women en rolled in the Food Stamp program in Durham, North Carolina, After randomiza tion to intervention or control groups, participants completed a baseline s urvey and were resurveyed 1-3 months post-intervention. Measures included d ietary fat intake assessed using a brief food-frequency questionnaire, stag e of change, knowledge of low-fat foods, self-efficacy and eating behavior questions. The computer-based intervention consisted of a tailored soap ope ra and interactive 'info-mercials' that provided individualized feedback ab out dietary fat intake, knowledge and strategies for lowering fat based on stage of change. At followup, intervention group participants had improved significantly in knowledge (P < 0.001), stage of change (P < 0.05) and cert ain eating behaviors (P < 0.05) compared to the control group, Both study g roups had lowered their reported fat intake markedly at follow-up (P < 0.00 1), but did not differ significantly from each other. A majority of partici pants rated the program as very helpful and were interested in using a simi lar program in the future, The findings of this pilot study suggest that co mputerized tailored self-help health promotion programs may be effective ed ucational interventions for lower income and minority populations.