Healthy Lunchbox Challenge Helps Influence Healthy Eating Habits in Children

Philadelphia, PA, February 19, 2014 /3BL Media/ – During the school year, 21 million children receive free or reduced-price lunches, yet less than 10% of those children participate in the Department of Agriculture’s Summer Food Service Program. This discrepancy places responsibility for food choices during the summer on parents. Previous efforts to improve the healthfulness of foods and beverages provided by parents have resulted in little to no improvement in the amount of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and/or water.

To address the issues of food selection and rapid weight gain among children observed in the summertime, a group of researchers from the University of South Carolina used summer day camps as a unique opportunity to influence food and beverage choices of the children attending. By implementing the Healthy Lunchbox Challenge (HLC), an innovative theory and incentive-based program, at four large-scale, community-based summer day camps, Michael W. Beets, MEd, MPH, PhD, and colleagues noted significant increases in the amount of healthy food brought by children as well as decreases in untargeted foods such as sugar-sweetened beverages and salty snacks.

The HLC is a low-cost program requiring minimal resources. In the current study, two intervention components were developed: parent and staff education, as well as an incentive program for children. For education, parents and staff were given the HLC mission and procedures, as well as, a guide to choosing healthy foods and beverages. Incentives, identified by the summer day camps, were distributed based on points accumulated by the children and staff for bringing fruits, vegetables, and water.

Among the nearly 2,000 children observed, of which 50% were eligible for free or reduced lunch, researchers noted increases of 12% for fresh fruit, 11% for vegetables, and 14% for water brought, on average from baseline to posttest. Likewise, they observed decreases of 15% and 13% in the amount of chips and non-100% juices brought, respectively. For the staff, of which more than 200 were observed, researchers noted an increase in fruit and vegetables brought of 18% and 13%, respectively, and decreases of 31% for chips and 6.4% for soda.

“With over 14 million children attending summer day camps, introduction of the HLC can serve as a way to influence the eating habits of children during the summer,” said lead author Falon Tilley, MS, Department of Exercise Science, Arnold School of Public Health, University of South Carolina. “These findings have important implications for summer day camps and other child care settings where there is minimal control over the foods brought on-site.”

The researchers believe the HLC can be easily implemented in summer day camps and consequently influence the eating behavior of children. However, further research is needed to determine the success of HLC in other settings. Future research should also explore additional modes of education for parents and any other barriers to implementation.

# # #

Notes for editors
“Healthy Eating in Summer Day Camps: The Healthy Lunchbox Challenge,” by Falon Tilley, MS; Robert G. Weaver, MEd; Michael W. Beets, MEd, MPH, PhD; Gabrielle Turner-McGrievy, PhD, MS, RD, DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jneb.2013.11.008, Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, Volume 46, Issue 2 (March 2014), published by Elsevier.

Full text of the article is available to credentialed journalists upon request; contact Eileen Leahy at +1 732 238 3628 or jnebmedia@elsevier.com to obtain copies. To schedule an interview with the authors, please contact Jeff Stensland, USC News and Internal Communications, at +1 803 777 7686 or stenslan@mailbox.sc.edu.

An audio podcast featuring an interview with Falon Tilley and Michael Beets and information specifically for journalists are located at www.jneb.org/content/media. Excerpts from the podcast may be reproduced by the media; contact Eileen Leahy to obtain permission.

About the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior (www.jneb.org)
The Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior (JNEB), the official journal of the Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior (SNEB), is a refereed, scientific periodical that serves as a resource for all professionals with an interest in nutrition education and dietary/physical activity behaviors. The purpose of JNEB is to document and disseminate original research, emerging issues, and practices relevant to nutrition education and behavior worldwide and to promote healthy, sustainable food choices. It supports the society’s efforts to disseminate innovative nutrition education strategies, and communicate information on food, nutrition, and health issues to students, professionals, policy makers, targeted audiences, and the public.

The Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior features articles that provide new insights and useful findings related to nutrition education research, practice, and policy. The content areas of JNEB reflect the diverse interests of health, nutrition, education, Cooperative Extension, and other professionals working in areas related to nutrition education and behavior. As the Society's official journal, JNEB also includes occasional policy statements, issue perspectives, and member communications.

About Elsevier
Elsevier is a world-leading provider of scientific, technical and medical information products and services. The company works in partnership with the global science and health communities to publish more than 2,000 journals, including The Lancet and Cell, and 25,000 book titles, including major reference works from Mosby and Saunders. Elsevier’s online solutions include ScienceDirect, Scopus, SciVal, Reaxys, ClinicalKey and Mosby’s Suite, which enhance the productivity of science and health professionals, helping research and health care institutions deliver better outcomes more cost-effectively.

A global business headquartered in Amsterdam, Elsevier employs 7,000 people worldwide. The company is part of Reed Elsevier Group PLC, a world leading provider of professional information solutions in the Science, Medical, Legal and Risk and Business sectors, which is jointly owned by Reed Elsevier PLC and Reed Elsevier NV. The ticker symbols are REN (Euronext Amsterdam), REL (London Stock Exchange), RUK and ENL (New York Stock Exchange).

Media contact
Eileen Leahy
Elsevier
+1 732 238 3628
jnebmedia@elsevier.com