Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t7czq Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-24T02:29:00.366Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Promotions to increase lower-fat food choices among students in secondary schools: description and outcomes of TACOS (Trying Alternative Cafeteria Options in Schools)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2007

Jayne A Fulkerson ,
Simone A French ,
Mary Story ,
Helen Nelson  and
Peter J Hannan
Jayne A Fulkerson*
Affiliation:
Division of Epidemiology, University of Minnesota, 1300 South Second Street, Suite 300, Minneapolis, MN 55454-1015, USA
Simone A French
Affiliation:
Division of Epidemiology, University of Minnesota, 1300 South Second Street, Suite 300, Minneapolis, MN 55454-1015, USA
Mary Story
Affiliation:
Division of Epidemiology, University of Minnesota, 1300 South Second Street, Suite 300, Minneapolis, MN 55454-1015, USA
Helen Nelson
Affiliation:
Division of Epidemiology, University of Minnesota, 1300 South Second Street, Suite 300, Minneapolis, MN 55454-1015, USA
Peter J Hannan
Affiliation:
Division of Epidemiology, University of Minnesota, 1300 South Second Street, Suite 300, Minneapolis, MN 55454-1015, USA
*
*Corresponding author: Email [email protected]
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.
Objectives:

(1) To describe promotional activities, particularly student-led, targeting lower-fat à la carte foods that were conducted in secondary schools; and (2) to describe the relationships between the number and duration of total promotional activities for lower-fat à la carte foods and cafeteria sales of such foods over two years.

Design:

Promotional activities were implemented in schools that were randomised to the intervention condition of a larger, two-year, school-based, randomised, controlled nutrition intervention trial.

Setting:

Ten Minnesota secondary schools.

Subjects:

Students and school faculty, school food-service and research staff (measured at the school level).

Results:

Over two years, 181 promotions were implemented (n = 49 in Year 1 and n = 132 in Year 2). In Year 1, the number of promotions conducted in schools was significantly associated with percentage lower-fat food sales. In Year 2, the duration of promotions was significantly associated with percentage lower-fat food sales.

Conclusions:

Collaborative efforts among students, school food-service staff and research staff can be successful in implementing a large number of nutrition-related, school-wide promotional activities. These efforts can increase the sales of lower-fat foods in à la carte areas of school cafeterias.

Keywords

PromotionsFood choicesStudentsNutritionIntervention
Type
Research Article
Information
Public Health Nutrition , Volume 7 , Issue 5 , August 2004 , pp. 665 - 674
Copyright
Copyright © The Authors 2004

References

1Komro, KA, Perry, CL, Veblen-Mortenson, S, Williams, CL. Peer participation in Project Northland: a community-wide alcohol use prevention project. Journal of School Health 1994; 64: 318–22.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
2Komro, KA, Perry, CL, Murray, DM, Veblen-Mortenson, S, Williams, CL, Anstine, PS. Peer-planned social activities for preventing alcohol use among young adolescents. Journal of School Health 1996; 66: 328–34.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
3Black, DR, Tobler, NS, Sciacca, JP. Peer helping/involvement: an efficacious way to meet the challenge of reducing alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use among youth. Journal of School Health 1998; 68: 87–93.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
4Goldberg, L, MacKinnon, DP, Elliot, DL, Moe, EL, Clarke, G, Cheong, J. The adolescents training and learning to avoid steroids program: preventing drug use and promoting health behaviors. Archives of Pediatric & Adolescent Medicine 2000; 154: 332–8.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
5Fors, SW, Jarvis, S. Evaluation of a peer-led drug abuse risk reduction project for runaway/homeless youths. Journal of Drug Education 1995; 25: 321–33.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
6Ozer, EJ, Weinstein, RS, Maslach, C, Siegel, D. Adolescent AIDS prevention in context: the impact of peer educator qualities and classroom environments on intervention efficacy. American Journal of Community Psychology 1997; 25: 289–323.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
7Orpinas, P, Kelder, S, Frankowski, R, Murray, N, Zhang, Q, McAlister, A. Outcome evaluation of a multi-component violence-prevention program for middle schools: the Students for Peace project. Health Education Research 2000; 15: 45–58.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
8Bandura, A. Social Learning Theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1977.Google Scholar
9Bandura, A. Social Foundation of Thought and Action. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, Inc., 1986.Google Scholar
10Dusenburg, L, Falco, M. Eleven components of effective drug abuse prevention curricula. Journal of School Health 1995; 65: 420–5.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
11Perry, CL. Preadolescent and adolescent influences and health. In: Smedley, BD, Syme, SL eds. Promoting Health: Intervention Strategies from Social and Behavioral Research. Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 2001.Google Scholar
12Mellanby, AR, Rees, JB, Tripp, JH. Peer-led and adult-led school health education: a critical review of available comparative research. Health Education Research 2000; 15: 533–45.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
13Mellanby, AR, Newcombe, RG, Rees, J, Tripp, JH. A comparative study of peer-led and adult-led school sex education. Health Education Research 2001; 16: 481–92.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
14Perry, CL, Grant, M. Comparing peer-led to teacher-led youth alcohol education in four countries. Alcohol Health & Research World 1998; 12: 322–6.Google Scholar
15Klepp, K-I, Halper, A, Perry, CL. The efficacy of peer leaders in drug abuse prevention. Journal of School Health 1986; 56: 407–11.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
16Perry, CL. Prevention of alcohol use and abuse in adolescence: teacher vs. peer-led intervention. Crisis 1989; 10: 52–61.Google ScholarPubMed
17Komro, KA, Perry, CL, Veblen-Mortenson, S, Williams, CL, Roel, JP. Peer leadership in school and community alcohol use prevention activities. Journal of Health Education 1999; 30: 202–8.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
18Contento, L, Balch, G, Bronner, Y, Lytle, LA, Maloney, SK, Olson, CM, Swadenei, SS. The effectiveness of nutrition education and implications for nutrition education policy, programs and research: a review of research. Journal of Nutrition Education 1995; 27: 284–418.Google Scholar
19Luepker, RV, Perry, CL, McKinlay, SM, Nader, PR, Parcel, GS, Stone, EJ, et al. Outcomes of a field trial to improve children's dietary patterns and physical activity. The Child and Adolescent Trial for Cardiovascular Health. CATCH collaborative group. Journal of the American Medical Association 1996; 275: 768–76.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
20Snyder, MP, Story, M, Trenkner, LL. Reducing fat and sodium in school lunch programs: The LUNCHPOWER! Intervention Study. Journal of the American Dietetic Association 1992; 92: 1087–91.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
21Arbeit, ML, Johnson, CC, Mott, DS, Harsha, DW, Nicklas, TA, Webber, LS, et al. The Heart Smart cardiovascular school health promotion: behavior correlates of risk factor change. Preventive Medicine 1992; 21: 18–32.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
22Story, M, Mays, RW, Bishop, DB, Perry, CL, Taylor, G, Smyth, M, et al. 5-a-day Power Plus: process evaluation of a multicomponent elementary school program to increase fruit and vegetable consumption. Health Education & Behavior 2000; 27: 187–200.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
23Story, M, Lytle, LA, Birnbaum, AS, Perry, CL. Peer-led, school-based nutrition education for young adolescents: feasibility and process evaluation of the TEENS study. Journal of School Health 2002; 72: 121–7.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
24Agron, P, Takada, E, Purcell, A. California Project LEAN's Food on the Run Program: an evaluation of a high school-based student advocacy nutrition and physical activity program. Journal of the American Dietetic Association 2002; 102: S103–5.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
25Perez-Rodrigo, C, Aranceta, J. School-based nutrition education: lessons learned and new perspectives. Public Health Nutrition 2001; 4: 131–9.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
26Monge-Rojas, R, Nunez, HP, Garita, C, Chen-Mok, M. Psychosocial aspects of Costa Rican adolescents' eating and physical activity patterns. Journal of Adolescent Health 2002; 31: 212–9.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
27French, SA, Story, M, Fulkerson, JA, Hannan, P. An environmental intervention to promote lower fat food choices in secondary schools: outcomes from the TACOS study. American Journal of Public Health 2004, in press.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
28US Department of Agriculture. National school lunch program and school breakfast program nutrition objectives for school meals (TCFR 210.220). Federal Register 10 06 1994; 30218–21.Google Scholar
29Story, M, Neumark-Sztainer, D. School-based nutrition education programs and services for adolescents. Adolescent Medicine 1996; 7: 287–302.Google ScholarPubMed
30French, S, Story, M, Fulkerson, JA, Gerlach, AF. Food environment in secondary schools: à la carte, vending machines, food policies and practices. American Journal of Public Health 2003; 93: 1161–7.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
31Holland, PW, Weloch, RE. Robust regression using interatively reweighted least squares. Communications Statistics: Theory and Methods 1977; 6: 813–27.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
32SAS Institute, Inc. SAS User's Guide: Statistics, 8th version Cary, NC: SAS Institute, Inc., 1999.Google Scholar
33Backett-Milburn, K, Wilson, S. Understanding peer education: insights from a process evaluation. Health Education Research 2000; 15: 85–96.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
34Lachter, RB, Komro, KA, Veblen-Mortenson, S, Perry, CL, Williams, CL. High school students' efforts to reduce alcohol use in their communities: Project Northland's youth development component. Journal of Health Education 1999; 30: 330–42.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
35Martinson, BC, Lazovich, D, Lando, HA, Perry, CL, McGovern, PG, Boyle, RG. Effectiveness of monetary incentives for recruiting adolescents to an intervention trial to reduce smoking. Preventive Medicine 2000; 31: 706–13.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
36Stevens-Simon, C, Dolgan, JI, Kelly, L, Singer, D. The effect of monetary incentives and peer support groups on repeat adolescent pregnancies. A randomized trial of the Dollar-a-Day Program. Journal of the American Medical Association 1997; 277: 977–82.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed