Children in the United States often fall short of consuming the recommended daily intake of fruits and vegetables. In 2017, the CDC estimated that 1% of youth in the state of Kentucky consumed the recommended amount of vegetables and 5% consumed the recommended amount of fruit. Consuming fruits and vegetables is associated with reduced risk for cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, some cancers, and obesity. Research has shown that consuming a healthy dietary pattern in youth increases the chances of carrying the behavior through to adulthood. Youth nutrition education and cooking education programs are proven strategies for enhancing youth consumption of fruit and vegetables and their willingness to try new foods.

The Recipes for Life (RFL) program is a hands-on cooking and nutrition curriculum for fifth-grade youth. Participants attend a day of learning at the Extension office and are divided into small teams to work with an adult volunteer to learn about healthy eating, nutrition, food safety, food preparation techniques, as well as time management and mathematical strategies in the kitchen.

The University of Kentucky Nutrition Education Program (NEP) selects a number of counties each year to fund the implementation of the RFL program through the SNAP-Ed grant. In the 2022-2023 grant year, NEP funded eleven counties to implement the program. Across eleven counties, 1,715 fifth-grade students participated in the program in the 2022-2023 grant year. Extension Agents are able to implement the program, outside of the SNAP-Ed funded counties, amounting to a total of 2,312 participants. Following the program, 85% of participants reported an intention to eat more vegetables and 87% reported an intention to eat more fruits. Positive outcomes were seen in various cooking skills as well as nutrition knowledge, such as how to correctly hold a knife and identify the MyPlate food groups. Youth are supplied with an assortment of cooking-related reinforcement items and a recipe booklet to reinforce favorable behavior change outside of the classroom.

Positive attitudes towards the Recipes for Life program are exhibited by volunteers and implementers alike. Most counties implementing the program go on to implement it the following year, providing an enticing field trip for fifth graders.

References:

Bai, Y., Young-Hee, K., Young-Hee, H., & Hyun, T. (2018). Impact of a school-based culinary education program on vegetable consumption behavior, intention, and personal factors among Korean second-graders. Nutrition Research and Practice, 12, 527-534. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30515281/ https://doi.org/10.4162/nrp.2018.12.6.527

Lange SJ, Moore LV, Harris DM, et al. Percentage of Adolescents Meeting Federal Fruit and Vegetable Intake Recommendations — Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System, United States, 2017. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2021;70:69–74. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm7003a1external icon.

Yu, Z.M., DeClercq, V., Cui, Y., Forbes, C., Grandy, S., Keats, M. Parker, L., Sweeney, E. & Drummer, T.J.B. (2018). Fruit and vegetable intake and body adiposity among populations in Eastern Canada: the Atlantic Partnership for Tomorrow’s Health Study. BMJ Open, 8 (4). https:// bmjopen.bmj.com/content/8/8/e018060 https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2017-018060