2009 Volume 17 Issue 2 Pages 54-70
Objective: To develop an integrated program of nutrition education and environmental intervention utilizing worksite cafeteria and to examine effectiveness of the program.
Methods: A baseline survey was conducted to 1530 employees in a food-manufacturing factory in Chiba prefecture, and 596 employees completed the survey. Of the valid respondents, a total of 123 males and females whose BMI(kg/m2) was 25 or higher and waist circumference was 85 centimeters or greater (applied to males only) were selected as the direct study participants in this quasi-experimental study: 58employees who responded to calls for the educational sessions were assigned into the education-plus-environment group and other 65 employees were assigned into the environment-only group. The education-plus-environment group received nutrition education sessions with video programs along with the environmental intervention in the worksite cafeteria, canteens on the TTM, whereas the environment-only group received the environmental intervention. Fifty-three participants in the education-plus-environment group and 55participants in the environment-only group were included in the analysis.
Results: All participants in the education-plus-environment group answered that the video program was easy to understand. Of those participants, 95.5% of male and 87.1% of female employees responded that they incorporated some idea from the educational sessions into their everyday life. Male employees in the education-plus-environment group showed significant changes consistently in knowledge on vegetable dish in the Japanese Food Guide Spinning Top(p=0.005), self-efficacy to eat vegetables at least twice a day (p=0.001), vegetable dish consumption of 5 to 6 servings a day (p=0.021), and nutrient intakes of dietary fiber (4.9(SD1.5) to 5.6(SD1.4)g/1,000kcal: p=0.021) and folic acid (129(SD 57) to 161(SD 47)mg/1,000kcal:p=0.011). Similarly, female employees in the education-plus-environment group showed consistent changes in variables regarding a goal to decrease sugar-sweetened beverage consumption.
Conclusion: Only the education-plus-environment group showed desirable behavioral changes in knowledge, self-efficacy, dietary behavior, and food and/or nutrient intake; therefore, this study suggests that nutrition education and food environmental intervention should be integrated to achieve these behavioral changes.
