The GREEN Project Lunch Box Study

Tufts University

Status: Completed

Conditions: Health Communication

Treatments: Behavioral: Healthy Eating + Eco-Friendly Campaign; Behavioral: Healthy Eating Campaign

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other; NIH

Identifiers

NCT01573845

1R01HD065888-01

1R01HD065888 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Details and patient eligibility

About

The central hypothesis of The GREEN Project Lunch Box Study is that a school-based communication campaign that combines healthy eating and eco-friendly messages will improve the quality of foods that children bring from home to school more than a healthy eating campaign alone and compared to a control/delayed intervention condition at the end of one school year.

Full description

The proposed intervention seeks to improve the quality of foods brought to school from home by taking advantage of a natural synergy between healthy eating and eco-friendly behaviors to increase motivation to adopt healthy eating behaviors. The project involves the design, implementation and evaluation of a novel, school based communications campaign to simultaneously improve the nutrition quality and eco-friendliness of foods that elementary school children bring from home to school.

The intervention is a theory-based multi-channel communications campaign based on qualitative research with the target population: children in grades three and four in public schools in Eastern Massachusetts and their caregivers. Schools were randomized to one of three conditions: (1) a campaign that includes healthy eating and eco-friendly messages; (2) a campaign that includes healthy eating messages only; and (3) a delayed healthy eating eco-friendly campaign after serving as a control group. Foods brought from home and the packaging associated with those foods will be assessed at baseline and at the end of the school year using a photographic technique.

The primary outcome of interest is change in the number of servings of fruits and vegetables. Secondary outcomes will include changes in the quantity of sugar-sweetened beverages; changes in processed, energy-dense foods; and changes in sugar sweetened beverages brought from home. We will also be able to assess changes in trash associated with foods brought from home.

Enrollment: 979 patients

Sex: All

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion and exclusion criteria

CHILD PARTICIPANTS

Inclusion Criteria:

• 3rd or 4th grade student in participating classroom
• Brings food from home to school at least 3 days per week

Exclusion Criteria:

• Not a 3rd or 4th grade student
• Not enrolled in a participating classroom
• Does not bring food from home to school at least three days per week

PARENT/CARETAKER PARTICIPANTS

Inclusion Criteria:

• Child is a 3rd or 4th grade student in participating classroom
• Child brings food from home to school at least 3 days per week

Exclusion Criteria:

• Child is not a 3rd or 4th grade student
• Child is not enrolled in a participating classroom
• Child does not bring food from home to school at least three days per week

Trial design

979 participants in 3 patient groups

Healthy Eating + Eco-Friendly Campaign

Experimental group

Treatment:

Behavioral: Healthy Eating + Eco-Friendly Campaign

Healthy Eating Campaign

Active Comparator group

Treatment:

Behavioral: Healthy Eating Campaign

Control/Delayed Intervention

No Intervention group