Objective The research objective was to identify how healthy eating was understood in a disadvantaged community and how barriers to healthy eating might be overcome. Design Participatory action research. Setting Communities in Gurnos, Merthyr Tydfil, one of the most deprived areas in the UK.Method Trainees on a participative methods course undertook handson research, directed by the course leader and local researchers. Respondents were from established local groups, including elderly, carer and toddler and residents' groups. Participants were asked to identify and rank healthy and unhealthy foods and to discuss barriers to healthy eating in their community. Results Participants demonstrated fairly good knowledge of what constituted a healthy diet, but many found that this was difficult to achieve. Barriers included conflicting advice from professionals, lack of time, advertising, community norms and poor quality food available in school. Conclusion In order to be successful, healthy eating initiatives need to embrace the multifaceted nature of this issue in poor communities, including food as an aspect of local culture.

This article examines the authentic experience of those who live in a community categorized as disadvantaged as they enter into a radical action research process that entails them adopting a changed role while remaining community members and how they manage the tensions involved in this process. It explores, in their own words, the experience of these researchers as they encounter the struggle, conflict and often injustice inherent in the process of community regeneration and how these tensions are managed and sometimes resolved both within the community and within themselves. These Community Based Action Researchers (CBAR) have no formal research training but they bring a wealth of local knowledge, understanding and engagement that no amount of formal training could provide. These locally based researchers work in partnership with more formally trained researchers and professionals to utilise action research as an effective methodology for tackling the problems faced by the community.