Nutritional intervention and breakfast behavior of kindergartens

Yongqing Gao, Chunsheng Cai, Jian Li, Wenjie Sun

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

4 Scopus citations

Abstract

Background: To examine the effect of nutritional education on children’s breakfast patterns Methods: A kindergarten based nutrition intervention was started in September 2001 among 8 kindergartens in Hefei with a total of 2, 012 children aged 4-6 years and their parent pairs. Results: Monthly nutrition education sessions were held over two semesters in kindergartens part of the inter-vention arm. The approach in education and the content of other activities were uniform across all the kinder-gartens. A validated questionnaire was used to record breakfast behavior over 7 days including at least one weekend. The parents recorded the children’s breakfast pattern (frequency, time, and food selection) at base-line, middle, and end of the study. After intervention, there were significant differences at the final stage, but none at the baseline before intervention. There were changes not only in breakfast frequency, but also in the breakfast selection Conclusion: The breakfast pattern of Chinese children can be modified through nutrition education after a long term intervention.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)297-304
Number of pages8
JournalIranian Journal of Public Health
Volume45
Issue number3
StatePublished - 15 Mar 2016
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Breakfast
  • Children
  • China
  • Intervention

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