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Completed

NCT Number: NCT06266533

Dismantling the U.S. Social Norm of the "Kids' Food" Archetype (REACH Project)

This project is the first stage of a health promotion campaign to shift social norms about marketing and feeding children ultra-processed foods. Embedded within a longitudinal ethnographic study using photo-elicitation techniques, mothers of preschool-age children will be randomly assigned to arts-based or traditional education about ultra-processed food.

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Key information

Conditions

Food Selection Behavior Environmental Exposure Feeding Behavior Food Preferences

Age range

18 year–85 year

Sex eligibility

Female

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Leaguers Inc. Head Start

Newark, New Jersey, 07102, United States

About this study

  • At baseline, describe how mothers of preschool-age children characterize food for children in their home and local environment and describe their knowledge of ultra-processed food.
  • To test different ways of providing nutrition education for increasing knowledge about children's nutrition and ultra-processed foods. Hypothesis: Both groups will correctly identify more ultra-processed foods post-education.
  • To learn in depth from mothers of preschool children about their perceptions of the food environmental culture (markets, advertising, health messaging, community norms, cultural norms, social norms) in Newark, NJ, through a series of focus group discussions about the mothers' photographs of the local food environment pre and post project.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • English-speaking
  • African American or Black or bi-racial or multi-racial African American and Black mothers
  • >18 years
  • Female
  • Legal guardian of a preschool-age child (3-5 years) participating in the Leaguers, Inc.

Head Start programming.

Exclusion criteria

  • Spanish-speaking
  • Other racial and ethnic groups
  • Fathers

Treatment and study plan

Conventional Ultra-processed Food Nutrition Education

Behavioral

The participants will receive a conventional nutrition education session with slides, flyers/handouts, and a lecture with discussion.

Arts-based Ultra-processed Food Nutrition Education

Behavioral

The participants will receive an arts-based nutrition education session with video, animation, music, and discussion.

Primary outcomes

  1. Ultra-Processed Food Knowledge

    Time frame: 60 minutes

    Participants will classify pictures of foods as ultra-processed or whole foods (adapted from Sarmiento-Santos, cited below) and as healthy or unhealthy. on a Pre and post-ultra-processed food knowledge questionnaire. Both sets of questions are yes or no categorical questions.

  2. Environmental assessment of ultra-processed food

    Time frame: 6 months

    Participant photographs of the local food environment. At two time points (pre and post educational intervention) participants will take photographs of the local food environment including grocery stores, restaurant menus, etc. The purpose of this is to learn from participants about how they perceive the local kids' food environment and if they observe differences after the intervention. Photo elicitation techniques will be used during a series of focus groups for participants to discuss the photographs they took. These data will be analyzed using a layered analysis of the photographs (appraisal, discussion with participant who took the photo, cross-photo comparison, and interpretation) pre and post educational intervention, and thematic analysis of the focus group transcripts.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

Other

Registry information

Official study title

Dismantling the U.S. Social Norm of the "Kids' Food" Archetype That Includes Ultra-processed Foods Such as Chicken Nuggets and Fries in the Newark, NJ Community

Important dates

Study start
2024
Primary completion
2024
Study completion
2024
First posted
Feb 20, 2024
Registry last updated
Jul 24, 2025

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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