Impact of a Culturally Appropriate Nutrition Intervention on Latinos in Central Ohio

Human Ecology Undergraduate Honors Research ScholarshipThis study evaluates the effectiveness of a community based nutrition intervention for low-income Latinos in central Ohio. The Healthy Latino Families Program (HLFP) included healthy cooking and nutrition classes, and aerobic workouts for 20 weeks. In order to measure dietary intake improvements, a 22-item Spanish version food behavior checklist was administered to 53 Latino families before and after participation. Bi-variate analyses indicated a significant improvement for most items. Consumption of fruit per day increased for adults (p<0.001) and both adults and children reported eating more varieties of fruits (p<0.01). Three times as many adults began using food labels to select foods (p=0.0001) and the number of adults and children choosing low-fat food increased (p<0.01). The number of adults and children consuming soft drinks was cut in half (p