The Influence of Culinary Interventions on Eating Habits in a PostSecondary Educational Environment

Often, students entering college find themselves in a transitional phase, gaining new independence and responsibilities, including purchasing food and beverages and making decisions that may not have been necessary before. Blue Raiders Drink Up (BRDU) is a grant-funded program by the Tennessee Department of Health, under the Project Diabetes Initiative. This program strives to help Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU) students make healthier food and beverage decisions. Students at MTSU were invited to participate in a four-part series cooking class led by a registered dietitian. Students learned various cooking basics to make simple, budget-friendly, healthy meals. Students were also instructed on meal planning strategies and grocery shopping skills (i.e., reading and translating nutrition labels and shopping on a budget). Data were collected over three years using a pretest/posttest design to assess changes in knowledge and behavior toward food and beverages. Participants could attend optimal subsequent health coaching sessions with a certified health coach or registered dietitian. In total, 229 students completed the pretest/posttest assessment. Significant improvement was noted in knowledge level, kitchen safety and familiarity, and meal-planning/grocery shopping skills. Although college students may enter the university with previous cooking and nutrition knowledge obtained from secondary-level FCS classes or their home environments, the number of education hours necessary to evoke behavior change may not be sufficient to lead to long-lasting changes. In addition, students are frequently living independently and purchasing their food for the first time. These challenges may explain why some of the measured behaviors did not result in the desired changes and outcomes. The BRDU classes were successful in significantly improving self-reported knowledge and increased intention to practice food preparation and shopping skills learned in this course leading to healthier food choices, such as consuming more fruits and vegetables.