Nutrition Education Program Assistants know the importance of teaching youth to utilize the Nutrition Facts Label to make healthier dietary decisions. A primary component of the NEP youth curriculum is instructing youth participants in the importance of reading, comparing, and analyzing Nutrition Facts Labels to make healthier meal and snack choices. According to an NIH study published in 2018, while Nutrition Facts Label use was associated with better dietary quality in young adults, only a third of those studied use the label frequently. 

In January of 2023, the Fayette County Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) Assistant had the good fortune of being invited to present nutrition lessons from the USDA- Serving Up MyPlate curriculum to the students in the Garden Springs Elementary School FRC Afterschool Program.   During the seven weeks spent with this group, the students expressed great interest in learning about the ingredients and nutritional value of the food they ate. The EFNEP Assistant and students analyzed Nutrition Facts labels from several of the students’ favorite meals and snacks to determine which foods represented a healthier choice.  Upon completion of the class, participating students showed an 83% improvement in frequency of reading Nutrition Facts labels and an over 80% increase in their consumption of fruits and vegetables.

The FRC Coordinator shared a couple of comments made by the students in relation to the Nutrition Facts label and trying new foods. One participant said he liked the class because he was learning the importance of knowing “what’s inside the food we eat”, while another youth participants stated that she was now more likely to try new foods and, in most cases, “liked what she tried”.