The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA

Abstract #70299

Judy F. Wilson, MPH, RD, U. S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service, 3101 Park Center Drive, Room 1014, Alexandria, VA 22302, 703-305-2585, Judy.Wilson@fns.usda.gov and R. Jane Mandell, MS, RD, US Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service, 3101 Park Center Drive, Room 1014, Alexandria, VA 22302.

In FY 2002, the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) formulated an Agency wide plan to ensure implementation of a coordinated, comprehensive and cross-program initiative to address dietary and related lifestyle behaviors among children and low-income families. This national initiative was developed to promote healthy eating and lifestyle behaviors among those served by nutrition assistance programs and to focus the efforts of the federal programs around several central issues. The social-ecological model served as the theoretical framework for developing cross-program nutrition education interventions and strategies that address the following key areas: promoting healthy eating and active lifestyles, promoting breastfeeding, increasing fruit and vegetable intake, promoting healthy school nutrition environments, developing partnerships, and providing training and technical assistance. Activities planned involved each nutrition assistance program with support provided by each of the seven FNS regional offices. There is no available data set to track short-term changes in eating and lifestyle behaviors among FNS program participants therefore the following proxy measures include: number of materials distributed, number of trainings/conferences conducted and individuals reached, number of policy changes that support healthy eating and lifestyle behaviors, number of partnerships and/or collaborations established or expanded and number of new initiatives/projects completed and/or disseminated. Regions will be reporting and collecting information on successful state and local level nutrition education interventions. A compilation of promising practices will be shared via an electronic publication on the FNS website. This presentation will describe the planning process, report outcomes, and share promising practices.

Learning Objectives:

At the conclusion of the session, the participant(learner) in this session will be able to: 1.List the six focus areas of the Food and Nutrition Service Breaking the Barriers Initiative.
• Identify opportunities for cross-program collaborations and partnerships within each State.
• Describe how to access publication of promising practices identified and tracked in this initiative during 2003-04.

Keywords: Nutrition, Federal Initiatives

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: Food and Nutrition Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: Employment