Development and Implementation of a Hybrid Online and In-Person Food Sovereignty and Nutrition Education Curriculum for Native American Parents: The FRESH Study

Abstract

The Food Resource Equity and Sustainability for Health (“FRESH”) study is an Indigenous-led intervention to increase vegetable and fruit intake among Native American children. As part of this study, we developed a hybrid (online and in-person) food sovereignty and nutrition education curriculum for the parents of these children. This 16-week curriculum was developed to promote household- and community-level healthy eating and food sovereignty practices to parents of preschool-aged children residing in Osage Nation, Oklahoma. A total of 81 parent/caregivers participated in the curriculum component of the FRESH study, with a median age of 34 years (range: 23–54 years). Most study participants were female (88.9%) and less than half (45.7%) had an annual household income of more than US$50,000. Most were married or had a significant other (76.5%) and worked full-time (65.4%). The median total number of children in the home <18 years of age was three (range: 1–8). Participation among the 94 parents was 56% during the first week and was 12% in the final week. Having some college or technical training (vs. having a college degree) and having an annual household income of US$20,000–US$50,000 (vs. more than US$50,000) were associated with fewer sessions attended ( p = 0.004 and 0.02, respectively) Being married (vs. not) was associated with higher attendance ( p < .0001). Participation in a hybrid food sovereignty and nutrition education curriculum for parents was generally low, but income, education, and marital status were associated with curriculum participation. Our research adds to the literature by describing the development and implementation of this curriculum and recommendations for future research incorporating Indigenous approaches to health.

Impact of a Farm-to-School Nutrition and Gardening Intervention for Native American Families from the FRESH Study: A Randomized Wait-List Controlled Trial

“…In addition, we did not directly intervene with parents, which contributed to low participation rates in the study's online component of the parent curriculum. Only 56% of parents attended the first week of the online curriculum and 12% attended the final week [25]. However, in contrast, participation in the in-person component of the parent/family intervention (e.g., family nights) was nearly twice as high as the online participation, although it also decreased as the intervention continued [25].…”

“…Although the FRESH study did not directly intervene upon dietary intake of parents, we did include a passive online and in-person hybrid parent curriculum, adapted from the Choose Health LA's Healthy Parenting Workshops [22], with components from the First Nations Development Institute's Food Sovereignty Assessment Tool [23] and the Grassroots International's Food for Thought and Action curriculum [24]. The online curriculum comprised of 12 short video modules focused on providing parents with strategies to support their children in eating healthier foods and included healthy lifestyle education and healthy parenting practices [25]. The in-person component included three in-person family night workshops that focused on food sovereignty in the community and community capacity building for health.…”

“…The in-person component included three in-person family night workshops that focused on food sovereignty in the community and community capacity building for health. More details regarding the adaptation of the parent curriculum are described elsewhere [25].…”

Five recommendations for using large-scale publicly available data to advance health among American Indian peoples: the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development (ABCD) StudySM as an illustrative case

“…Another important construct missing from the presented rationale [ 22 ] is food insecurity, which has been identified as a key risk factor for obesity [ 28 ] and is a disproportionate burden among AIAN communities [ 29 ]. Increased burden of food insecurity likely results from historically discriminatory practices, inadequate availability of culturally appropriate services (e.g., food sovereignty and security interventions) [ 30 , 31 ], and socioeconomic disadvantage. CN health system partners also report that limited access to fresh produce is a common barrier to healthy eating in some communities.…”

Design and Methods of a Participatory Healthy Eating Intervention for Indigenous Children: The FRESH Study

“…Intervention families were also given weekly take-home kits specific to each lesson, which included a healthy recipe and ingredients to make the recipe. More information regarding the FRESH parent curriculum can be found elsewhere ( 49 ).…”