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Completed

NCT Number: NCT03678779

Snack It Up for Parents: Interventions to Improve Children's Snacks

Influencing children's snacking habits has the potential to reap long-term rewards, yet few studies have focused on helping parents to provide healthier snacks for their children. The study tested the feasibility and preliminary effectiveness of parent interventions to improve snacks for children ages 8-12.

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Key information

Conditions

Snacking

Age range

18 year and older

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

About this study

Objective. Influencing children's snacking habits has the potential to reap long-term rewards, yet few studies have focused on helping parents to provide healthier snacks for their children. The study tested the feasibility and preliminary effectiveness of parent interventions to improve snacks for children ages 8-12.

Methods. Parents of children enrolled in an out-of-school-time soccer program in a low-income school district (n 16) were recruited. A comparison of 3 randomly-assigned interventions was conducted: 4 parents received grocery store gift cards (Incentive); 7 received nutrition education videos with tip sheets (Education); and 5 received both (Combined). The interventions were assessed qualitatively by interviewing parents and quantitatively to determine motivation (psychosocial survey) and children's snack quality (web-based 24-hour recall).

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

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

Inclusion criteria

  • 18 year and older
  • Must have a child enrolled in one of three designated soccer sites of the study and must agree to let their child take the online 24 hour recall (ASA24)
  • Must have a child 7 years or older participating on a soccer team
  • Must frequently buy groceries from Stop & Shop (only if recruited for a study arms that involves grocery coupons)
  • Must be literate in English or Spanish.

Exclusion criteria

  • Failure to provide informed consent

Treatment and study plan

Incentive

Behavioral

$5 grocery gift card

Education

Behavioral

Video-based brief nutrition education

Combined

Behavioral

Both Incentive and Education interventions received

Primary outcomes

  1. snack quality by on-line 24-hour dietary recall (ASA24)

    Time frame: 6 weeks

    grams of sugar, fruits and vegetables as snacks

Secondary outcomes

  1. Intrinsic motivation by adapted Intrinsic Motivation Inventory

    Time frame: 6 weeks

    Parent intrinsic motivation for providing fruit and vegetable snacks; questions adapted from the Intrinsic Motivation Inventory (McAuley, E., Duncan, T., & Tammen, V. (1989). Psychometric properties of the Intrinsic Motivation Inventory in a competitive sport setting: A confirmatory factor analysis. Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 60(1), 48-58).

  2. Decisional balance by the Mainvil Decisional Balance Scale

    Time frame: 6 weeks

    Parent pros and cons for providing fruit and vegetable snacks to children; questions adapted from Mainvil decisional balance scale (Mainvil, L. A., Lawson, R., Horwath, C. C., McKenzie, J. E., & Hart, I. (2010). Validated scales to assess adult decisional balance to eat more fruits and vegetables. Appetite, 55(3), 454-465. doi:10.1016/j.appet.2010.08.007)

  3. Self-efficacy by questions adapted NCI Food Attitudes and Behaviors Survey

    Time frame: 6 weeks

    Parent self-efficacy for providing fruit and vegetable snacks; questions adapted from the self-efficacy questions in the National Cancer Institute's Food Attitudes and Behaviors Survey (Erinosho, T. O., Pinard, C. A., Nebeling, L. C., Moser, R. P., Shaikh, A. R., Resnicow, K., . . . Yaroch, A. L. (2015). Development and implementation of the National Cancer Institute's Food Attitudes and Behaviors Survey to assess correlates of fruit and vegetable intake in adults. PLoS One, 10(2), e0115017. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0115017)

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Tufts University

Other

Collaborators

  • Newman's Own Foundation
  • Soccer4Success/America SCORES
  • Stop & Shop Supermarket Company

Registry information

Acronym: SIU4P

Important dates

Study start
2016
Primary completion
2016
Study completion
2016
First posted
Sep 20, 2018
Registry last updated
Sep 20, 2018

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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