Cooking for a Cause

Taylor Berlinsky, Primary Investigator

New Hampshire Food Bank
401-533-2980

Collaborator:

Cooking Matters Employee

April 7,2016
 Table of Contents

Abstract

Project Description/Grant Narrative

-Introduction..........................................................................................................1-3

-Goals and Objectives...........................................................................................3-4

-Methods................................................................................................................4-5

-Program Design...................................................................................................5-7

-Budget.....................................................................................................................7

-Marketing Strategy...............................................................................................7-8

-Evaluation................................................................................................................8

-Conclusion...........................................................................................................8-9

Tables..................................................................................................................................10

Figures............................................................................................................................10-11
References... 12-13
Abstract

Obesity is an increasingly troublesome problem in Nashua, New Hampshire.

Higher percentages of residents of all age ranges, youth, adolescents, and adults, have

been categorized as either overweight or obese. This causes long-term health problems as

well as increased health insurance costs. Creating a goal of reducing and preventing

obesity means that there is room for change in peoples lifestyles. Programs that include

nutrition education and cooking classes have been proven by several studies to increase

participants consumption of fruits and vegetables as well as positively changing their

attitudes about cooking, thus helping to reduce the prevalence of obesity. When people

learn about how foods affect their body and are able to learn how to incorporate healthy

ingredients into their cooking, they are more apt to eat foods that will impact their health

in a positive way. Evaluation of this program will include pre- and post-program surveys,

along with phone interviews after the sessions end. A program such as this would be well

suited for the city of Nashua to help decrease the rates of obesity and make it a healthier

place to live. With the help of a nutrition education and cooking class program, residents

of Nashua can begin to learn how important it is to eat healthier foods.

Project Description/Grant Narrative
Introduction:

Based upon a needs assessment completed about Nashua, New Hampshire, it is clear

that there need to be programs to decrease the rates of obesity in the city. Rates have been

increasing over the past few decades, and currently the majority of Nashua residents are either

overweight or obese.

Being overweight or obese leads to chronic diseases including heart disease,

hypertension, type 2 diabetes, stroke, certain cancers, and high cholesterol among others. In

addition to this, it causes an increase in health care costs over time.1 Being overweight can also

be a personal burden and cause for low self-esteem. Obesity has become a serious issue in

Nashua in the past few decades. According to the 2012 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance

System (BRFSS), 65.2% of adults in Nashua are either overweight or obese, and this

percentage is higher than both the county and state percentages. Additionally, 29% of

adolescents and 34.9% of youth in Nashua are overweight or obese. 2 This information can be

seen in Figure 1.

Throughout the state of New Hampshire in 2009, 36.5% of adults were overweight,

26.3% were obese, and 37.2% were a normal weight. 3 This can be seen in Figure 2. Based

upon this data, it is apparent that the prevalence of obesity is higher in Nashua than it is in the

rest of the state as a whole.

Eating habits of New Hampshire citizens were also studied, and it was found that only

27.9% of people ate fruits and vegetables at least five times per day.3 The high rates of obesity

can be partially attributed to these low rates of produce consumption. If people are not eating a

lot of fruits and vegetables, they are eating higher amounts of foods including starches, dairy,

meat, and processed foods. There could be several reasons for the low fruit and vegetable
consumption, such as access, cost, lack of nutrition knowledge, or they dont like the taste to

name a few. Regardless of why some people dont eat produce, educating New Hampshire

residents about the importance of adding fruits and vegetables to their diets could be beneficial

to reducing rates of obesity.

Additionally, 21.2% of adults in New Hampshire did not partake in any physical

activity.3 For school-aged Nashua residents, somewhere between 41% and 57% of students are

active for at least 60 minutes for five of seven days.1 In relation to inactivity, video games and

other electronics have been becoming increasingly popular over the last few decades, and they

play a role in why children and adolescents get less physical activity than they should. The

Youth Risk Behavioral Survey states that 41.3% of students reported playing video games for

three or more hours on a normal day, and 32.5% of students reported watching at least three

hours of television on a normal day.1 If these people learned how to cook, they might spend

less time in front of the screen and more time cooking meals with their families.

In Nashua, there are existing programs that educate low-income families about

nutrition and cooking, but there is a void in this area for families of other income levels. There

are also no classes available that focus on preventing and reducing obesity.

Cooking Matters offers a range of classes primarily run by volunteers that focus on diet

concerns, low-cost food options, healthy eating and hands-on learning.4 Additionally, cooking

classes will be offered by St. Joseph Hospital beginning in winter 2016, but these classes are

not focused on obesity and some include a fee.5 This shows that there is a clear need for

obesity education in Nashua. A class that covers nutrition and cooking skills all while focusing

on obesity prevention is something that Nashua is missing, and it will be beneficial to those

who participate.

2
Goals/Objectives:

The major goal of this grant is to decrease obesity in Nashua, New Hampshire by 10%

within two years. Along with that reduction, the nutrition and cooking classes should also work

to prevent obesity from occurring.

Short-term objectives are:

1. The participants should learn how healthy ingredients affect the body and

how to use them in everyday cooking.

2. People, or families, will learn how to incorporate nutritious foods into meals

to help manage and reduce their weights if necessary.

3. They should learn basic nutrition information that relates to obesity

prevention and weight loss as well as basic cooking skills.

Medium-term objectives are:

1. Participants should incorporate healthy cooking into their lifestyles based upon

information learned in the cooking classes.

2. Their new knowledge should help them choose to eat at home instead of eating out

because they will know how to cook a wider variety of meals than before.

Additionally, there are separate objectives for adults and children who participate in

the classes. Adults will be able to describe why certain foods are healthful to nutrition or not,

and they will be able to use those ingredients in cooking a meal. Children will be able to help

their parents with cooking when appropriate, and they will be able to say whether or a not

certain foods are healthy, excluding the why explanation.

All of these objectives will help lead to the big picture goal of decreasing obesity in

Nashua.

Methods:
 There is current research that supports the benefit of a cooking and nutrition

intervention grant, but there is a need for more research to create a better-rounded body of

information. A study conducted by members of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

(CDC) called The Impact of Cooking Classes on Food-Related Preferences, Attitudes, and

Behaviors of School-Aged Children: A Systematic Review of the Evidence, 2003-2014 focused

on using cooking classes to change the attitudes and behaviors of children. There were several

studies that focused on using cooking education programs and cooking classes to increase

healthful eating and decrease obesity among children. Because so many studies were looked at,

it was difficult to define what the most successful practices were, but it was determined that

there is a positive link between cooking programs and their attitudes about healthy food.6

There was also a study completed at Colorado State University that used the Cooking

with Kids program as the template for the study. Cooking with Kids is a program based in

schools that focuses on changing childrens fruit and vegetable preferences, giving cooking

experience, and increasing confidence when it comes to food. The program included a one-

hour introductory class, three two-hour cooking classes, and three one-hour fruit and vegetable

tastings. The assessment looked at fruit and vegetable preferences, cooking attitudes, and self-

efficacy, and gender and cooking experience were also taken into consideration. The results of

the study confirm that these educational and cooking classes increased the students desire to

eat vegetables as well as giving them a better attitude and more confidence about cooking. It

was especially successful with boys who had no cooking experience. It was also shown that

these are important factors in healthy eating and obesity prevention.7

Though these two studies show positive links to cooking classes and healthier diets,

thus decreased obesity, there are still knowledge gaps left to be filled. Information is lacking
with other age ranges because these studies only include school-aged children. More

information is needed about cooking and nutrition classes and if they work for adults, which

will be covered through this new program. Additionally, there is limited information about

whether or not the nutrition portion of class helps with healthy eating, so that will also be

incorporated into this study.

Program Design:

The program will take place over the span of six weeks and will be offered in the

kitchen at Nashua Community College. There will be one class every week during this period

of time, totaling six classes. Each class will be an hour and thirty minutes in duration. The

reason this time frame was chosen is because past studies have shown it is a successful period

of time for learning in other studies about cooking classes, and most people will not want to

commit to more than six classes.

The employee from Cooking Matters will help to design the classes, as this person has

experience with holding effective cooking and nutrition education classes. S/he will coordinate

the recipes with what is taught in the nutrition portion of the class, with a focus on one or two

main ingredients that align with the topic of the day. The nutritionist will include these

ingredients as highlights of the presentation, and the chef will include them as highlights of the

dish.

Each class will begin with the nutritionist giving a 20-minute presentation about the

topic of the day. See Table 1 for a list of these weekly topics. For example, the first week is

fruit, so the nutritionist will speak to how fruits benefit the body in general, and give more

specifics about what bananas or peaches provide for health. The presentation will also
include why this food group or topic, when paired with others, plays a key role in weight

reduction, weight maintenance, and a generally healthy lifestyle.

After this information is provided to the participants, they will be able to watch the

chef prepare ingredients that were spoken about to incorporate them into a meal. The food

demonstration will take approximately 20 minutes as well.

Following the food demo, the participants will have the opportunity to cook the dishes

by themselves. Ingredients, cooking tools and utensils, and recipes will be provided, and the

chef and cooking assistants will be present to guide the families while they prepare the meal.

When the food is complete, everyone will have the time to taste the food and talk about what

they learned during the session. This part of the class is less structured, and people will be

given the remaining 50 minutes to complete these tasks.

The target audience is people who want to learn how nutrition and cooking relate to

obesity prevention, and the classes are open to people of all sizes. Reaching children,

adolescents, and adults is important because obesity doesnt discriminate against age. Both

males and females are encouraged to participate, and there will be 100 people participating.

There are some assumptions that can be made about the results after the program.

One is that people will cook more often than they eat out because they will have gained

knowledge about how to navigate the kitchen and incorporate healthy foods in their diets.

Another is that they will prepare meals with healthier foods, and the last is that they will

be able to maintain healthier weights.

External factors that cannot be controlled include what people are eating, their

access to healthy foods, how much exercise they are getting, how much screen time they
have, or how much time they spend using electronics, genetics, and knowledge level or

capacity about nutrition and cooking.

Budget:
There will be several costs that are involved with this program. The salaries of the

nutritionist, Cooking Matters worker, chef, and two additional cooking assistants must be

paid. There will also be costs associated with renting the kitchen at Nashua Community

College for use during the program. Any kitchen supplies for the chef as well as

presentation equipment such as extension cords and a projector for the nutritionist must

be included. There will be a weekly cost of food that will be used for demo as well as

when the participants cook. Transportation for the person who goes to the grocery store

will also be included. Bowls, plates, and utensils for eating the meals is an additional cost,

along with sanitation products to clean the space after each session.

Marketing Strategy:

Promoting the cooking and nutrition classes is important to create interest and

participation. Flyers will be made and distributed around the city of Nashua, and they will

be posted in workplaces, doctors offices, hospitals, medical centers, town hall, grocery

stores and anywhere else that people may find them of interest. They will be given to

town officials to create awareness around Nashua. Lastly, the flyers will be given to

students to share with their parents. In addition to this, there will be an advertisement

placed in the local newspaper encouraging anyone who is interested to contact the

coordinator of the program. Social media webpages including Facebook, Instagram, and

Twitter will be created through the New Hampshire Food Bank so that pictures,

promotions, and information can be posted to keep residents updated.

Evaluation:
 Participants will fill out a questionnaire before and after the completion of the

program. Questions will assess the knowledge they had previous to the study and what

information they learned during the course of it. They will be asked about how certain

foods relate to their bodies, health, and obesity, and about cooking skills.

Another form of evaluation will include phone calls to participants that will

involve a short interview two months after the sessions have ended. This will determine

the real effect the program had on their day-to-day lives. Questions will include how the

peoples cooking and eating habits have changed since their participation in the classes,

as well as inquiring about any weight changes that may have occurred.

Conclusion:

Nashua, New Hampshire is a city where obesity is on the rise. There is a lack of

resources for people to use to help them gain an education about how they can prevent or

reduce obesity because there are limited cooking and nutrition classes. The few cooking classes

that do exist are not related to obesity and also cost money and are therefore not accessible to

everyone. Implementing six sessions that include nutrition education, cooking demos, and

cooking classes, followed by taste tests and conversations will help fill this void. People will

learn how healthy food affects their bodies, and how to use them in cooking their own meals. It

is a practical program with reachable goals and objectives that will improve the overall health

of its participants. Investing in this program will help to reduce and prevent obesity in Nashua,

and thus will decrease incidences of chronic diseases and unnecessary health care costs.

Class Topic
Class 1 Fruits

Class 2 Vegetables
Class 3 Whole Grains versus Refined Grains

Class 4 Proteins

Class 5 Quick, Healthy Meals

Class 6 Health Friendly Desserts

_______________________________________

Table 1: Schedule for Nutrition and Cooking Classes

Figures:
Figure 1: Percentages of Overweight and Obese People in Nashua, NH
Source: 2014 Greater Nashua Community Health Assessment
 Figure 2: Adult Weight Distribution in New Hampshire
Source: New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services
 References

1. Fast Facts: Obesity-Related Chronic Disease. Stop Obesity Alliance. Available

at:http://www.stopobesityalliance.org/wpcontent/themes/stot)obesitvalliance/pdfs/

Fast%20Facts%2QChronic%20Disease%201-2012.pdf. Accessed April 3,2016.

2. Weight Management, Physical Activity and Nutrition. 2014 Greater Nashua

Community Health Assessment. Available at:

http://www.nashuanh.gov/DocumentCenter/HomeWiew/2488. Published 2014.

Accessed April 3,2016.

3. Overweight and Obesity in New Hampshire. New Hampshire Department of

Health and Human Services. Available at:

http://www.dhhs.nh.gov/dphs/nhp/documents/obowdata2011 .ndf Published

Spring, 2011. Accessed April 2,2016.

4. Cooking Matters. New Hampshire Food Bank. Available at:

http://www.nhfoodbank.org/ Cooking-Matters, aspx.

Published 2016. Accessed April 2,2016.

5. Nutrition and Cooking Classes Announced for Winter 2016 at St. Joseph Hospital.

St. Joseph Hospital. Available at: http://www.stiosephhospital.com/news-and-

events/news-article?news=42. Published January 7,2016. Accessed April 2,2016.

6. Hersch D, Perdue L, Ambroz T, Boucher JL. The Impact of Cooking Classes on

Food-Related Preferences, Attitudes, and Behaviors of School-Aged Children: A

Systematic Review of the Evidence, 2003-2014. Center for Disease Control and

Prevention. 2014;11. Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/pcd/issues/2Q14/14

0267.htm.
7. Cuimingham-Sabo L, Lohse B. Cooking with Kids Positively Affects Fourth Graders

Vegetable Preferences and Attitudes and Self-Efficacy for Food and Cooking.

Childhood Obesity. 2013;9(6):549-556. Available at:

http://www.fshn.chhs.colostate.edu/research/SCOPL/files/CookingwithKids2013

ChildhoodObesitycunningham-Sabo Lohse.pdf.