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Impact Report

For plan KA 703. Nutrition Education and Behavior (Doña Ana County)
Date October 30, 2009, 6:40 pm
For Objective Short-term Show short-term objectives
Impact Report 2008-2009 Dona Ana County Report ICAN (Ideas for Cooking and Nutrition)UNIT Program Report (SNAP-ED and EFNEP)and Kitchen Creations Diabetes Cooking School Submitted by Gayla Weaver, Extension ICAN Home Economist October, 2008 - September 2009 ICAN PROGRAMS (Ideas for Cooking and Nutrition) The Dona Ana County ICAN program receives funding through the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education EFNEP) USDA grant dollars, and through the Supplemental Nutrition Education Program(SNAP)Food and Nutrition Service/ USDA grant dollars. EFNEP funding is provided to work with limited resource families with young children to improve dietary habits and health. All EFNEP participants complete a pre and post 24 hour diet recall and behavior survey before they graduate. The SNAP funding is provided to work with limited resource families, individuals, and/or senior citizens who qualify for food stamp assistance or who receive food stamps. The Dona Ana County ICAN nutrition educators provide nutrition education and/or classes at each of the three ISD offices in Dona Ana County. A SNAP scantron is completed at the end of a serices of classes by each participant measuring their before and after nutrition behavior. All 30 hour ICAN Nutrition Educators are required to graduate a minimum of 100-150 adults and 40 hour educators are required to graduate a minimum of 115-150 adults per program year. Thirty hour educators graduate a minimun of 200 youth whereas 40 hour educators graduate a minimum of 400 youth per program year. The Dona Ana County Action Plan (CAP) total graduation goal for both youth and adults was 2826. We exceeded out total graduation goal with 2929 graduates. This is quite remarkable considering that we had only three of our eight position filled continuously for the 12 months of reporting. ICAN ADULT PROGRAMMING: ICAN nutrition educators in Dona Ana County provide at least a four week series of nutrition and cooking lessons for limited resource individuals using the "Eating Right is Basic" curriculum as well as USDA's "Loving Your Family, Feeding Their Future" and the new senior "Eat Smart, Live Strong" materials. The core required lessons are: Back to Basics; My Pyramid and Serving Sizes; Reading Food Labels; Keeping Food Safe; Quick and Easy Meals; and Making the Most of Your Food Dollar. Classes are offered in Spanish as well as English and include a hands-on food preparation activity. One thousand five (1,005) adults graduated from the ICAN program completing at least eight intensive hours of nutrition and cooking classes. The following is a summary of the number of food and nutrition practices improved within cluster of questions by EFNEP graduates. FOOD RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PRACTICES OF EFNEP PARTICIPANTS IMPROVED AS INDICATED BY THE FOLLOWING: 63% of participants showed improvement in ONE or more of the following food resource menagement practices (i.e. plans meals, compares prices, does not run out of food or uses grocery lists). 33% of participants showed improvement in TWO or more food resource management practices (i.e. plans meals, compares prices, does not run out of food or uses grocery lists) 16% of participants showed improvement in THREE or more food resource management practices (i.e. plans meals, compares prices, does not run out of food or uses grocery lists). 3% of participants showed improvement in all FOUR resource menagement practices (i.e. plansmeals, compares prices, does not run out of food and uses grocery lists). NUTRITION PRACTICES OF EFNEP PARTICIPANTS IMPROVED AS INDICATED BY THE FOLLOWING 70% showed improvement in one or more nutrition practices (i.e. plans meals, makes healthy food choices, prepares foods without adding salt, reads nutrition labels or has children eat breakfast). 43% showed improvement in TWO or more of the above nutrition practices 23% showed improvement in THREE or more of the above nutrition practices 12% showed improvement in FOUR or more of the above nutrition practices 4% showed improvement in all FIVE of the above nutrition practices FOOD SAFETY PRACTICES OF EFNEP PARTICIPANTS IMPROVED AS INDICATED BY THE FOLLOWING: 45% of individuals showed improvement in one or more of the food safety practices (i.e. thawing and storing foods properly). 15% of individuals showed improvement in both of the food safety practices (i.e. thawing and storing foods properly). KIDS/CAN YOUTH CLASSES: One thousand twenty-four (1,024) youth participated in and graduated from at least four hours of cooking and nutrition classes during the 2008-2009 program year. Most of the youth graduates were students in either t he Gadsden Independent School District or the Las Cruces Public School District. The KIDS/CAN youth learned about eating healthy snacks and the importance of breakfast as well as incorporating more fruits and vegetables into their diet. This spring, our agency collaborated with the Colonias Development Council and taught four sessions of ICAN nutrition classes covering basic nutrition, the value of healthy foods, eating locally grown produce and exercise to colonia youth. During the summer months, our agency collaborated with the summer lunch feeding program run through Families and Youth Inc. providing nutrition education classes at most of the parks and some low-income housing units in Las Cruces, Tortugas and Dona Ana. As part of the Healthy Kids, Healthy Las Cruces initiative, “Cooking with Kids” classes were offered to all the fourth and fifth grade students at Conlee Elementary School. Over 148 Conlee students experienced other cultures through the hands-on activity of preparing a healthy and appealing meal from featured countries in the “Cooking with Kids” curriculum. “Cooking with Kids” is SNAP funded. ICAN/KIDS CAN VOLUNTEERS: Volunteers are a valuable resource for the ICAN program. The volunteers are often graduates of our nutrition education program. During the 2008-09 year, one thousand one hundred eight (1,108) hours supporting the adult and youth ICAN program were volunteered. At $17.00 per hour, $18,836.00 were indirectly contributed to the Dona Ana County ICAN program. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR ICAN STAFF: Over thirty professional development staff in-service trainings have been attended by the ICAN nutrition educators. Some examples are: “Customer Service” training presented by NMSU’s Employee Relations Department, “Pepper Spray for Private Citizens” taught by the NMSU Police Department, “Eat Smart, Live Strong” nutrition education curriculum for older adults, the “Latest on Food Labels”, ICAN & Diabetes” and updates on the Adult and Food Care Program required curriculum for child care providers. As a result of continuing staff development, the ICAN educators are better equipped to act in meaningful and measurable ways. As agents of change in the lives of their clients, the ICAN educators assist their participants in improving their quality of diet which has been noted in the improved nutrition practices of EFNEP graduates. KITCHEN CREATIONS DIABETES COOKING SCHOOLS: Diabetes is a particular concern in Dona Ana County. According to the New Mexico Department of Health’s Bureau of Vital Records & Health Statistics, in 2004 there were 13,192 adults in Dona Ana County with diabetes, at a rate of 9.8% which is somewhat higher than the New Mexico rate of 9.2% and significantly higher than the national rate of 7%. In New Mexico in 2003 diabetes was the 6th leading cause of death. If left untreated and uncontrolled, diabetes can result in serious complications such as blindness, amputation, kidney disease, stroke, heart disease and death. Kitchen Creations Diabetes Cooking schools are a program for people with diabetes and their families. The class series teaches healthy food choices and meal planning by providing hands-on opportunities to learn cooking techniques that use new or more healthful ingredients for traditional recipes. In addition, new foods are introduced. Behavior changes are encouraged through the preparation of tasty healthy foods. One bilingual Kitchen Creations Diabetes Cooking school was provided to the residents of southern Dona Ana County this year. Although only one class was offered, 44 individuals attended and received graduation certificates. The four, three hour classes were taught Saturday mornings at the Women’s Intercultural Center in Anthony, NM in late April and early May. At the end of each session, the participants were asked to set a goal for the following week. Some of the participant evaluation comments included: “This class has brought all the diabetes information I have learned over the last 8 years together”, and “I am always in denial about not eating saturated fat, but after hearing that it becomes cholesterol…that opened my eyes wide!” The final evaluation sheets were positive and more Kitchen Creations classes were requested. PECAN FOOD FANTASY: The Pecan Food Fantasy contest is held as part of the annual Western Pecan Grower Association (WPGA) annual conference. As an honorary member of the WPGA, the agent assisted in coordinating the contest. This included co-editing and compiling the Pecan Food Fantasy brochure listing the2008 winning recipes as well as securing judges for the contest. Individuals from the community enter food items containing pecans and winners are awarded ribbons and cash prizes. The best junior and senior traditional pecan pie win a $250.00 prize. Second best traditional pecan pie is awarded $100.00. Participants are encouraged to include pecans in their diet on a regular basis as part of a healthful eating.