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ARS Home » Plains Area » Grand Forks, North Dakota » Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center » Healthy Body Weight Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #290773
Title: Barriers and facilitators to following the Dietary Guidelines for Americans reported by rural, Northern Plains American-Indian children

Author
item Jahns, Lisa
item MCDONALD, LEANDER - Cankdeska Cikana Community College
item WADSWORTH, ANN - Cankdeska Cikana Community College
item MORIN, CHARLES - Four Winds Community School
item LIU, YAN - Baylor College Of Medicine
item Nicklas, Theresa - Baylor College Of Medicine

Submitted to: Public Health Nutrition
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/12/2014
Publication Date: 2/1/2015
Publication URL: http://handle.nal.usda.gov/10113/60193
Citation: Jahns, L.A., McDonald, L., Wadsworth, A., Morin, C., Liu, Y., Nicklas, T. 2015. Barriers and facilitators to following the Dietary Guidelines for Americans reported by rural, Northern Plains American-Indian children. Public Health Nutrition. 18(3), 482-489.

Interpretive Summary: The Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) promotes healthy dietary choices for all Americans ages two years and older; however, the majority of Americans do not meet recommendations. The goal of this study was to identify both barriers and facilitators to adherence to DGA recommendations for consumption of 5 nutrient-dense food groups; grains, vegetables, fruits, meat & beans, and milk (especially low-fat milk). Sixty-one 5th grade children living on a rural Northern plains American Indian reservation participated in the study. Nominal Group Technique meetings were used to identify and prioritize children’s perceived barriers and facilitators to following the DGA. Separate meetings were conducted for barriers and for facilitators to each nutrient-dense MyPyramid food group. After response generation to a single question about each food group (e.g. “what sorts of things make it harder (or easier) for kids to follow the MyPyramid recommendation for vegetables” children individually ranked their top 5 most salient responses. Ranked responses are presented verbatim. Core barriers for all food groups studied included personal preference; i.e., “don’t like”; environmental, i.e., “cost too much” “store is too far to get them” “grandma don’t have”. Core facilitators included helpful suggestions; i.e., “Make a garden and plant vegetables”; tell your friends to eat healthy”. These results suggest that barriers and facilitators are dissimilar for individual food groups, suggesting that dietary interventions should target reduction of barriers and promotion of facilitators for individual food groups recommended by the DGA.

Technical Abstract: Objective: The Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) promotes healthy dietary choices for all Americans ages two years and older; however, the majority of Americans do not meet recommendations. The goal of this study was to identify both barriers and facilitators (BAFs) to adherence to DGA recommendations for consumption of 5 nutrient-dense food groups; grains (especially whole grains; WG), vegetables, fruits, meat & beans (MB), and milk (especially low-fat milk). Design: Nominal Group Technique meetings were used to identify and prioritize children’s perceived BAFs to following the DGA. Separate meetings were conducted for BAFs to each nutrient-dense MyPyramid food group. After response generation to a single question about each food group (e.g. “what sorts of things make it harder (or easier) for kids to follow the MyPyramid recommendation for vegetables” children individually ranked their top 5 most salient responses. Ranked responses are presented verbatim. Setting: A rural Northern plains American Indian reservation; USA. Subjects: Sixty-one 5th grade children. Results: Core barriers for all food groups studied included personal preference; i.e., “don’t like”; environmental, i.e., “cost too much” “store is too far to get them” “grandma don’t have”. Core facilitators included helpful suggestions; i.e., “Make a garden and plant vegetables”; tell your friends to eat healthy”. Conclusions: Barriers and facilitators are dissimilar for individual food groups, suggesting that dietary interventions should target reduction of barriers and promotion of facilitators for individual food groups recommended by the DGA.