Pairing Feeding Content With a Nutrition Education Curriculum: A Comparison of Online and In-Class Delivery

Abstract Objective To develop a childhood obesity prevention program, Food, Feeding and Your Family (FFYF), which encourages eating self-regulation in young children. This article describes the research methods for FFYF. Activities that will be used to guide the development of the program are illustrated in a logic model. Design A randomized control trial will be conducted with participant groups randomized into 1 of 3 conditions: (1) in-class delivery of feeding content and nutrition education, (2) online delivery of feeding content and in-class delivery of nutrition education, and (3) nutrition education only. Assessments will be collected at baseline, program completion, and 6 and 12 months after completion of the program. Setting Study will be conducted through the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program in Colorado and Washington State. Participants Parents with 2- to 8-year-old children will be recruited from affiliated community agencies, 540 participants across both states. Interventions FFYF derives content from an empirically validated parental feeding program, Strategies for Effective Eating Development, and will be administered with Eating Smart • Being Active, an evidence-based, nutrition education curriculum. Main Outcome Measures Parents will report on feeding practices, child eating behaviors, feeding styles, and acculturation. Analysis Because of the nested nature of the data, multilevel analyses will be used: time points, within parents, and within groups.