Setting: Community (Live)

StrongPeople™ Strong Hearts

StrongPeople™ Strong Hearts (SPSH) is a cardiovascular disease risk reduction program for midlife and older adults designed to improve diet and physical activity behaviors, assess local food and physical environment resources, and shift social norms about active living and healthy eating. The program consists of experiential one-hour group classes twice weekly for six months (48 classes) addressing multiple levels of the socioecological model (individual, social, and environmental levels). Class activities include aerobic exercise; strength training; instruction, discussion, and activities related to nutrition, physical activity, stress, and social support; and civic engagement activities to increase awareness and knowledge of aspects of the local food and physical environment that make healthy living easier or more difficult.  

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reduced Screen Time 

Intervention Type: Direct Education 

A Taste of African Heritage

A Taste of African Heritage (ATOAH) is a direct education cooking and nutrition curriculum designed to increase consumption of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, and spices and reduce salt; improve cooking skills and nutritional literacy; reduce diet-related health disparities in the African American community using heritage as a motivator for health; and reframe nutrition and culinary education in a way that is culturally relevant to participants and honors African American’s culture, traditions, and contributions. African Americans are too often told that the foods they grew up eating are unhealthy and that poor health is a part of their heritage. A Taste of African Heritage (ATOAH) flips the script by celebrating the culinary legacy and often-unsung cultural ownership of healthy eating for people of African descent. Consisting of six 2-hour sessions which feature healthy foods (like leafy greens, whole grains, and beans) from across the African diaspora, the accessible six-session format can be easily scaled into existing community health infrastructure, yet it is immersive enough to produce meaningful results. 

Please Note: If using this curriculum with SNAP-Ed audiences, MyPlate must also be introduced and discussed along with the curriculum.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating 

Intervention Type: Direct Education

Steps to Health’s Nuts and Bolts of a Healthy Food Pantry

The Nuts and Bolts of a Health Food Pantry Toolkit is a direct education and PSE change intervention that is designed to support pantries in improving the food environment so their clients can choose healthy food and beverage items. The components of the Toolkit include a resource guide, baseline and follow-up assessments to explore opportunities for PSE, training modules for food pantry staff and volunteers, action planning tools for sustaining PSE changes, and promotional materials, such as signage and “nudge” cards to influence healthy choices. The Toolkit equips partners to share best practices when collaborating with food pantries.  

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Food Insecurity/Food Assistance  

Intervention Type: Direct Education, PSE Change 

Healthy Drinks for Toddlers

Healthy Drinks for Toddlers is a social marketing intervention designed for caregivers of young children to discourage provision of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) and encourage water consumption. The 45-second videos counter fruit drink and toddler milk marketing messages, inform caregivers about why these drinks are not recommended for young children and include a specific message to parents to “keep it simple, keep it real” by serving water and plain milk to their toddlers once weaned from breastmilk/infant formula. These materials provide SNAP households with young children accurate information about the best drinks to serve during their child’s transition from breastmilk/infant formula to regular table food, a critical time in development of healthy eating habits. 

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating 

Intervention Type: Social Marketing 

PowerUp Your School

PowerUp Your School (PowerUp) is an evidence-based physical activity program aligned with academic standards and social-emotional learning skills. As a direct education program, PowerUp helps youth meet national physical activity guidelines by engaging K-8th grade participants in 30 minutes of physical activity, a minimum of two times per week, in before and after school settings. Every PowerUp lesson is aligned with national Math and English Language Arts academic standards to engage students in active learning. Designed to minimize barriers to physical activity, PowerUp does not require any equipment and can be successfully implemented in a variety of spaces including gymnasiums, cafeterias, classrooms, hallways, common spaces, or outdoors. 

Target Behavior: Physical Activity and Reduced Screen Time 

Intervention Type: Direct Education

Steps to Health’s PSE Toolkit: The Ingredients for a Welcoming Farmers Market

The Ingredients for a Welcoming Farmers Market Toolkit is a PSE change intervention that uses best practices to contribute to a more welcoming farmers market environment for all community members. The Toolkit outlines a 7-step process designed to assist with data collection, analysis, and action planning. The baseline assessment determines whether the market is implementing the healthy practice in question or if the market needs some improvement in that area. The resource guide helps staff better understand why questions are included in the assessment, and how the market can improve its practices related to each question. Using the Community Food Survey included in the Toolkit, staff collect responses from community members to better understand why individuals might not attend the farmer’s market or what foods they might be interested in buying at the market.  

Target Behavior: Food Insecurity/Food Assistance 

Intervention Type: PSE Change 

Supporting Wellness at Pantries (SWAP) using the HER Nutrition Guidelines for the Charitable Food System

Supporting Wellness at Pantries (SWAP) is a PSE intervention designed to promote the donation and selection of nutritious foods throughout the charitable food system. The program is based on the theory that categorizing food using simple, intuitive labels and communicating this information at each decision point while food travels through the system (donor, food bank, food pantry, & client) has the potential to transform the policy, systems, and environment of food banks and food pantries. SWAP consists of a suite of tools for food banks and food pantries to rank their inventory using a traffic light nutrition system. SWAP was developed in 2016 and revised in 2020 to align with and use the Healthy Eating Research (HER) Nutrition Guidelines for the Charitable Food System. These guidelines place foods into 11 categories and assign green=choose often; yellow=choose sometimes; and red=choose rarely based on levels of saturated fat, sodium, and added sugars. SWAP can be used as an intervention in multiple levels of the charitable food system to promote food justice and health equity. 

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Food Insecurity/Food Assistance 

Intervention Type: PSE Change 

Around the Table

Around the Table is a direct education intervention for youth that upholds principles of trauma-informed engagement and nourishment. It is designed to improve cooking skills, food safety, food resource management, and healthy eating, as well as increase awareness surrounding stress, emotional eating, health values, and feeding children. Participants enjoy hands-on cooking, facilitated conversations, and interactive activities that build healthy connections to food, self, and community.  

Additionally, Around the Table: Nourishing Families is for young adults and parents. It is a curriculum that upholds principles of trauma-informed engagement and nourishment where participants enjoy conversation, reflection, cooking, sharing a meal together, and learning holistic skills to care for their families’ nutritional well-being.  

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating  
Intervention Type: Direct Education 

Telephonic Health Coaching Intervention (THC) Toolkit

The Telephonic Health Coaching Intervention (THC) Toolkit is a direct education intervention designed to:

  • Increase frequency of eating all five food groups
  • Increase frequency of eating a variety of fruits and vegetables
  • Increase whole fruit consumption by at least half a cup per day
  • Increase vegetable consumption by at least half a cup per day
  • Increase frequency of intake of fat-free or low-fat dairy including (dairy/nondairy) and yogurt, and decrease frequency of intake of full fat dairy (milk/yogurt)
  • Increase frequency of whole grains and decrease consumption of refined grains
  • Increase frequency of lean proteins and decrease frequency of high fat proteins
  • Decrease sugar-sweetened beverage intake
  • Increase frequency of low sodium foods
  • Increase minutes of daily physical activity

In order to achieve these goals, the THC intervention provides material to train SNAP-Ed educators to be health coaches that engage with clients by telephone and use behavior change techniques to craft individual goals related to healthy eating and physical activity. The increased intensity, duration and personalization of the THC intervention improve the likelihood that persons eligible for SNAP will make healthy food choices and choose physically active lifestyles consistent with the current USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time

Intervention Type: Direct Education

Food Smarts

Food Smarts is a direct education intervention that is designed to support healthy behavior change in the areas of healthy eating, food safety, cooking, food waste reduction and food resource management. In 2022, Leah’s Pantry released an updated version of Food Smarts that incorporates principles of trauma-informed nutrition.  Food Smarts is a flexible, learner-centered, multi-session nutrition and cooking program with several available lesson plans to fit the needs of a variety of settings. A kitchen is not required for the implementation of the intervention, but participants can be engaged in simple recipe preparation as an instructional strategy. The adult curriculum of Food Smarts is available in English, Spanish, Russian, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Korean. The youth curriculum is available in English.  

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating  
Intervention Type: Direct Education 

Veggie Van (VV) Toolkit

The Veggie Van (VV) Toolkit is a policy, systems, and environmental change intervention designed to:

  • Increase access to healthy, affordable fruits and vegetables in lower income and/or food insecure communities
  • Help the target population improve their diets through skill building
  • Address the interplay between the physical food environment, individual perceptions of that environment, and self-efficacy
  • Address multiple dimensions of access to fresh produce for lower-income and under-served communities, including availability, affordability, accessibility (geographic and financial), and accommodation
  • Improve self-efficacy for finding, purchasing, and preparing fruits and vegetables or other healthy foods via cooking and nutrition education interventions

VV achieves these goals via mobile farmers markets that present cooking demonstrations, recipes, taste tests, and nutrition education to help customers better use the produce they receive. VV mobile markets also accept SNAP benefits, electronic benefits (EBT), and other relevant local food incentive and benefit programs, as well as employ a bundling model in addition to a la carte purchasing. The bundling model allows the VV mobile markets to sell more items at a lower cost and expose participants to a greater variety of fruits and vegetables. Markets operate a minimum of 10 months out of the year and typically source produce locally or regionally.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Food Insecurity/Food Assistance

Intervention Type: PSE Change

10 Tips for Adults

10 Tips for Adults (10 Tips) is a multi-level direct education intervention designed to reinforce messages related to increasing fruit and vegetable consumption, increasing physical activity, consuming more water, and providing SNAP eligible adults with the skills to purchase healthy foods on a budget. The curriculum can be used in a variety of community-based settings frequented by SNAP eligible adults that complement and reinforce PSE interventions such as community gardens, healthy retail, worksite wellness, and healthcare clinical community linkages. The curriculum was designed to be implemented by qualified, professional Nutrition Educators and includes two distinct, but complementary, four-session series: Series A: Choosing MyPlate and Series B: Eating Better on a Budget. 10 Tips works to increase participants’ perceptions of the importance of a healthy diet and decrease their perceived barriers to shopping, cooking, and eating healthy on a budget. Each session includes a recipe demonstration and tasting to introduce participants to new healthy foods and simple cooking techniques to reduce perceived barriers to preparing healthy foods. 

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time, Other: Budget-savvy shopping strategies   
Intervention Type: Direct Education 

Cooking Matters for Healthcare Partners (CMHP)

Cooking Matters for Healthcare Partners (CMHP) is a direct education and policy, systems, and environmental (PSE) change intervention designed to increase participant consumption of fruits and vegetables by 15% based on the pre-post program surveys, increase participant access to direct nutrition education, and link SNAP/WIC eligible individuals to preventative community health interventions. To achieve these goals, the program couples the evidence-based Cooking Matters for Adults (CMA) curriculum with produce distribution at the end of each class so that participants can practice their cooking skills at home. For six months after completing the CMA class, participants have monthly nutrition education sessions with clinic nutritionists and redeem their produce via voucher redemption at Fresh MARTA Markets. Overall, the program increases access to direct nutrition education and produce in locations where SNAP/WIC eligible individuals seek health services, in order to change participant behaviors relating to fruit and vegetable consumption and food resource management.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Food Insecurity/Food Assistance, Other: Food Resource Management

Intervention Type: Direct Education, PSE Change

Healthy for Life Community Nutrition Program (HFL)

The Healthy for Life (HFL) Community Nutrition Program is direct education designed to change relationships with food and nutrition by inspiring individuals and families to make healthy food choices part of their everyday lives. It was designed from the community engagement model, emphasizing participants’ contribution in refining the program and program resources follow the 4-A format (Anchor, Add, Apply and Away). Also, community fit was ensured through the consideration of existing programs along with the target population and facilitator capabilities. Program material was designed to be culturally relevant and facilitators should connect and establish a reciprocal sense of trust and respect among participants. The materials are flexible and can accommodate individuals with time constraints, limited budgets, and minimal nutrition knowledge. The program aims to improve participant confidence and attitudes to sustain healthy behavior change. The recommendation is to offer at least four educational experiences, over 2-3 months to equips individuals with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to discover, choose, and prepare healthy food. Through facilitated food discovery experiences, participants will build food literacy to improve their health. 

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating  
Intervention Type: Direct Education 

Stay Strong, Stay Healthy (SSSH)

Stay Strong, Stay Healthy (SSSH) is a direct education intervention designed to help older adults increase physical activity, decrease sedentary behaviors, increase fruit and vegetable consumption, and sustain physical activity participation and healthy eating behaviors post program. SSSH strives to meet the need for effective community-based physical activity (PA) and nutrition programs, so classes are offered by trained SSSH instructors in familiar locations such as churches, community centers, and senior centers. SSSH consists of 16 one-hour sessions over eight weeks. Participants complete a warmup, a prescribed set of upper- and lower-body strengthening exercises, and a cool-down. SSSH challenges participants through incremental increases in exercise volume and intensity. Each PA session is followed by a nutrition lesson, and lessons are tailored to older adults by addressing topics such as fiber, bone health, and vitamins and minerals for healthy aging. In addition to weekly group classes, participants are encouraged to complete the program on their own once a week, including preparation of the recipes. After the course ends, participants are still encouraged to continue at home or with a community group. The overall goal of SSSH is to increase PA and improve nutrition behavior to help seniors maintain independence.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time

Intervention Type: Direct Education

PSE Readiness Assessment and Decision Instrument (PSE READI)

The PSE READI intervention was designed with guidance from SNAP-Ed and public health practitioners in Ohio to promote successful implementation of community nutrition Policy, System, and Environmental (PSE) programs as a broader strategy for obesity prevention. Practitioners can take the online PSE Readiness Assessment and Decision Instrument (READI) to assess their community’s readiness and capacity to implement community nutrition PSE changes. The PSE READI can be completed by an individual or the practitioner can invite community members to share their input in a team assessment. The six different PSE READIs currently available include: Farmers’ Markets, Healthy Food Retail, Farm to School, Healthy Eating Policies in Childcare, Food Pantries and K-12 Schools. After completion of your PSE READI, a report will be generated with three recommendations. These recommendations will help practitioners and teams plan next steps and guide community nutrition PSE implementation tailored to local community readiness and capacity. The PSE READI website includes a curated resource library with over 1,000 toolkits, guides, and other evidence-based PSE resources that provide guidance to help end-users put into action their community nutrition PSE implementation.  

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating  
Intervention Type: PSE Change 

Families Eating Smart and Moving More (FESMM)

Families Eating Smart, Moving More (FESMM) is a direct education intervention designed to improve dietary intake, increase daily physical activity, and improve home food safety practices, food resource management, and food security. FESMM is a curriculum package that is evidence-based and hands-on. The intervention provides interactive nutrition education sessions that were developed based on a community needs assessment of existing data showing diet and physical activity behaviors, food resource management skills, food safety practices, and food security practices among low-income, low-resource adults living in NC. The lessons in the curriculum include recipes along with physical activities that help participants learn simple solutions to eat smart and be active every day. FESMM addresses key behaviors linked to obesity by helping families learn how to increase fruit and vegetable intake, eat together as a family, reduce screen/sedentary time, control portion sizes, and limit consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages. 

 

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time  
Intervention Type: Direct Education 

Child Health Initiative for Lifelong Eating and Exercise (CHILE) Plus

The Child Health Initiative for Lifelong Eating and Exercise (CHILE) Plus is a multi-component nutrition and physical activity education program for preschool age children and their families. CHILE Plus is the dissemination project of CHILE, a randomized control trial conducted by the University of New Mexico Prevention Research Center (UNM PRC). CHILE Plus is based on the socioecological model and includes 6 components that fit into this model: the classroom curriculum, staff professional development, food service, family engagement, grocery store collaboration, and partnership with local health care providers and Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program providers.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time, Food Insecurity/Food Assistance

Intervention Type: Direct Education, PSE Change

SNAP-Ed Soccer for Success (SfS)

Soccer for Success (SfS) is a direct education intervention designed to improve fitness levels of participants, improve nutritional knowledge and behavior of participants (and their families), and improve youth development outcomes of participants. SfS helps kids establish healthy habits and develop critical life skills through trained coach-mentors. Our multifaceted model combines structured physical activity, nutritional education, family engagement resources, and coach-mentoring best practices. The nutrition component meets USDA standards. SfS lessons are taught 3 times a week for 12 or 24 weeks by trained coach-mentors. SfS’ curriculum provides coach-mentors with tools to integrate nutrition lessons into fun activities. As a result, children are constantly engaged and challenged to incrementally increase both their level of physical activity and their understanding of healthy lifestyles. To further address the social determinants of health, we use SfS as a hub for wrap-around health services. The SfS model incorporates community engagement days, featuring health resources from local community-based organization partners.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time

Intervention Type: Direct Education

The OrganWise Guys Program (OWG)

The OrganWise Guys Program (OWG) can be delivered via both direct and indirect education including PSE change interventions designed to increase fruit and vegetable consumption and increase physical activity among participants as well as facilitate PSE changes in the settings in which it is conducted. SNAP-Ed staff or trained classroom teachers provide direct education through various curriculum to youth in childcare and school settings and provide support materials for families. The WISERCISE! program provides 10-minutes of desk-side daily physical activity in the classroom. Foods of the Month helps create a healthy cafeteria environment in schools and during family style eating/snacking in EC Centers via daily nutrition messaging and outreach to parents. The OWG gardening curriculum helps establish gardens while children learn to grow and consume homegrown food. This curriculum focuses on PSE changes by working with school wellness councils to develop policies that address foods served at school events, establish school gardens, and improve and promote school meals/snacks. Partnerships and parent/adult engagement in positive health behaviors can lead to PSE change that is sustainable and beneficial community wide. Indirect education includes a wide variety of behavior tracking tools for use at home to reinforce key messages. All the above items can be delivered in the traditional way using physical items or via the online platform across all target audiences. 

Additionally, The OWG online component allows for projects to collect usage data from all users on the platform. Data collection reports will be available to SNAP-Ed partners which tracks/reports on total time of each session with details on books read, activity sheets/newsletters downloaded, videos watched and physical activity (via new WISERCISE! level).  This usage report can assist with your PEARS reporting.  

 

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Fruit and Vegetable Consumption, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time, Food Insecurity/Food Assistance 

Intervention Type: Direct Education, PSE Change 

Heart Smarts

Heart Smarts is a direct education, PSE change, and social marketing intervention that combines healthy food access, nutrition education, and health and social services for individuals to improve their health and reduce their risk of diet-related disease. The program offers nine lessons for use in retail environments covering topics like fruits and vegetables, whole grains, sodium, sugar-sweetened beverages and making healthy choices along with nutrition-focused tip sheets. Each lesson includes taste tests, recipes, healthy food incentive coupons* and health screenings* (for blood pressure, weight checks, and healthy lifestyle counseling and referrals). Technical assistance and training is provided to site staff and storeowners to support PSE changes including healthier stores, businesses and communities.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating

Intervention Type: Direct Education, Social Marketing, PSE Change

*These Heart Smarts components (health screenings, including blood pressure and BMI; counseling and referrals; and healthy food incentive coupons help participants choose heart-healthy items at the site) are not allowable by SNAP-Ed. Heart Smarts lessons and food tastings can be used without these additional components. Screenings and coupons can be funded by grants or partnered organizations.

FoodShare South Carolina

FoodShare South Carolina is a PSE change intervention designed to improve food security and health outcomes through fresh food access and affordability. Every 2 weeks residents can order a Fresh Food Box using cash or SNAP/EBT. The program is a SNAP Healthy Bucks site (a state SNAP healthy incentives program), which allows SNAP recipients to receive a $15 healthy incentive to go towards the cost of their box. Each Fresh Food Box contains 9-11 varieties of culturally appropriate fruits and vegetables, always with a mix of more common items (e.g., apples) and less common items (e.g., radishes). A recipe card that is culturally relevant to participants and based on the produce in the box in a given week is also included. The program is situated within an academic medical center and community-based hospital system. A screening and referral process was created that links patients to FoodShare sites across the state.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Food Insecurity/Food Assistance

Intervention Type: PSE Change

Illinois Junior Chefs

Illinois Junior Chefs (IJC) is a direct education curriculum designed to improve dietary attitudes and behaviors in youth ages 8-13 through learning hands-on cooking skills and MyPlate food group education. IJC is a 10-hour cooking education program designed for five two-hour classes. Each class focuses on a food group and related cooking skills. Recipes provided let participants practice specific cooking skills for preparation of foods for the food group highlighted in each lesson. A variety of recipes are included in the curriculum as well as additional resource links for supplemental recipes. Recipe selection should be based on age-appropriate cooking tasks for the participants and culturally appropriate recipes for diverse audiences. Participants are recruited through eligible schools and community agencies. Eligible participants attend IJC classes at sites having access to running water and electricity for the purpose of hand washing, food safety, and preparing recipes that need cooking.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Other: Cooking Skills

Intervention Type: Direct Education

Healthy Steps to Freedom

Healthy Steps to Freedom (HSF) is a direct education health, nutrition, and body image program (part of a broader intervention that includes PSE) designed to augment existing broad-based drug treatment and community education programs for women in recovery for substance use/misuse. While the long-term goal of HSF is to reduce recidivism and attrition for females in treatment for substance use disorder (SUD), the more immediate short-term goal is to teach healthy lifestyles, improve fruit and vegetable consumption, help improve healthy behaviors, reduce food insecurity and improve treatment outcomes for women in recovery for substance use/misuse. The program includes nutrition, diet quality, balanced meal planning, physical activity, family mealtimes, understanding nutrition panels, increased fruit and vegetable consumption, food resource management, positive self-esteem and reduced body dissatisfaction.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time, Other: Dieting and Unhealthy Eating Behaviors, Body Image Disturbances and Substance Use/Misuse

Intervention Type: Direct Education

Together, We Inspire Smart Eating (WISE)

Together, We Inspire Smart Eating (WISE) is a direct education intervention designed to increase fruit and vegetable consumption in children in early education programs as well as in the home. WISE delivers developmentally appropriate food experiences and promotes behavior change through its 3 components: classroom curricula, parent engagement content, and educator training. The intervention is designed to be delivered across a 9-month term with food experiences and supporting activities executed weekly. This program creates positive changes in child and family eating behaviors that align with the current Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommendations, specifically, increasing the number of servings of fruit and vegetables consumed and an increase in a variety of fruits and vegetables consumed. Social media content is available for programs interested in using the content to engage families and early childhood educators in the WISE program goals.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating

Intervention Type: Direct Education

Mind, Exercise, Nutrition…Do It! (MEND)

Mind, Exercise, Nutrition…Do it! (MEND) program is a direct education intervention designed to manage overweight, obesity in children 2-13 years old and their families by improving health, fitness, and self-esteem. The MEND programs combine physical activity, healthy eating, and behavior change to facilitate safe, effective weight management and lasting changes in lifestyle. Programs run for 10 weeks and the child and at least one parent or primary caregiver must attend. MEND programs help families in the following areas: 

● Mind – improving children’s self-esteem and supporting families to change their behaviors around eating and activity 

● Exercise – engaging in regular physical activity that is fun 

● Nutrition – learning about good nutrition and healthy eating 

● Do it! – taking action to make healthy lifestyle changes long term 

The newest program, Healthy Together, for children ages 6–13 years and their families, is based on MEND 7-13 but with simplified delivery and focus on critical content. Healthy Together can be delivered by one person and is ideal for smaller groups and spaces. 

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time 

Intervention Type: Direct Education

Food Talk: Better U

The Food Talk: Better U (FTBU) curriculum is a direct nutrition education and obesity prevention curriculum taught by paraprofessionals in a classroom setting and focuses on healthy weight management tailored for SNAP-Ed eligible adult Georgians. FTBU includes both nutrition and physical activity (PA) components as weight management and obesity prevention strategies and helps participants increase portion control, decrease intake of sugar-sweetened beverages, make small healthy “shifts” in everyday food choices, and increase PA consistent with the 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, MyPlate guidance, and 2018 PA Guidelines for Americans. The curriculum is comprised of a series of four, 90-minute direct education classes that include the following elements: interactive learning activities, interactive sharing among participants, guided PA, cooking demonstrations and recipe tastings, goal setting, and food and/or PA tracking homework.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time

Intervention Type: Direct Education

Cooking is a SNAP

Cooking is a SNAP is a direct education intervention designed to (1) increase fruit and vegetable consumption; (2) increase confidence to plan and prepare meals at home and (3) move 30 minutes a day, most days of the week. Cooking is a SNAP is a culinary nutrition education curriculum. The curriculum consists of six 2-hour sessions with nutrition content derived from the 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans incorporating the USDA’s MyPlate materials. Physical activity content is from the 2018 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd edition and the 2016 National Physical Activity Plan. Culinary skills and basic cooking techniques have been modified from school food service materials developed by the University of Minnesota Extension. Cooking is a SNAP incorporates the social-cognitive theory of change where learning occurs in a social context with dynamic and reciprocal interactions of the person, environment, and behavior. Central to this theory, Cooking is a SNAP is designed as a hands-on, interactive curriculum where the leaders model the skills and behaviors they are teaching.

 

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity, Food Insecurity/Food Assistance

 

Intervention Type: Direct Education

Brighter Bites

Brighter Bites is a school-based health promotion program designed to change the behavior of children and their families to prevent childhood obesity and achieve long-term health outcomes. Brighter Bites includes: a) weekly produce distribution, b) nutrition education in schools and for parents, and c) a weekly fun food recipe demonstrations and tasting experiences for children and their parents throughout the school year. Brighter Bites is implemented for up to 16 weeks during the school year and up to 8 weeks during the summer. Participating schools are also trained to implement the evidence-based Coordinated Approach to Child Health (CATCH) curriculum other evidence-based programs that promote healthy food choices and physical activity. This comprehensive approach supports the shift in the culture of each school and families within that school toward being healthier and more focused on nutrition and healthy living.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Food Insecurity/Food Assistance

Intervention Type: Direct Education, PSE Change

Food eTalk

Food eTalk is direct education intervention designed to increase participant’s daily intake of fruit and vegetables, whole grains, and fat-free or low-fat dairy products; decrease daily intake of sodium; improve food resource management, food safety practices, and physical activity. The 6 interactive eLearning modules are self-paced and the mobile-nature of many Internet accessing devices (i.e., smartphones) encourages learning at the point-of-decision making, such as engaging in quick Food eTalk video-based lessons in a supermarket or restaurant. Additionally, the asynchronous “anytime, anyplace” lessons aim to mitigate traditional barriers to attending in-person classes, such as issues with transportation, variable work schedules, and child-care limitations. Food eTalk includes 6 interactive lessons, 6 accompanying cooking demonstration videos, and 4 “just in time” education videos with focus on meal preparation, food shopping, and food safety in the home.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating

Intervention Type: Direct Education

Healthy Choices for Every Body Adult Nutrition Education Curriculum

The Healthy Choices for Every Body (HCEB) is a direct education intervention designed to improve diet quality, physical activity, and food safety practices, as well as enhance food security and food resource management skills. HCEB incorporates lessons and activities that recognize participants’ experiences, skills, and knowledge; explains why, what, and how the nutrition education concepts presented relate to real-life situations; and includes active learning activities, hands-on practice, and demonstrations to help participants understand and apply content.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time, Food Insecurity/Food Assistance, Other: Food resource management skills, food safety practices

Intervention Type: Direct Education

Teen Battle Chef (TBC)

Teen Battle Chef (TBC) is a direct education and PSE change intervention designed to develop skills in nutrition, cooking, and leadership for participants and their families through cooking lessons, a PSE campaign, ongoing nutrition education, development of youth leaders, and supporting a culture of wellness in partner organizations. TBC includes eight sessions in which participants learn plant-focused recipes and cooking skills to compete in cooking battles. After eight weeks of skill development, the Teen Chefs choose one of four tracts to impact PSE change. The four tracts are bundled with the curriculum license and include School Food Ambassadors (for collaborating with schools’ food service), Special Event Headliners (for ensuring healthy options at School Events), CHEFS 4 Change (program for youth collaboration with local bodegas to support healthy ‘grab n’ go’ options), and Culinary Coaches (teaching other students healthy meal/snack strategies). The Teen Battle Chef LIVE online version allows for online instruction using an online delivery platform, such as Zoom or Google Meet.

TBC School Food Ambassadors have been effectively utilized as partners with school food service to co-develop new school menu items and promote them with demos and sampling. This active collaborative creates peer-driven motivation for more students to participate in school lunch and breakfast, which is easily measured through school food service participation rates.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time, Food Insecurity/Food Assistance

Intervention Type: Direct Education, PSE Change

Healthy Children, Healthy Families: Parents making a difference!

The Healthy Children, Healthy Families: Parents making a difference! (HCHF) is an 8-week intervention designed to increase healthy eating and physical activity and to reduce screen time. HCHF integrates parenting and nutrition education and is delivered to parents and caregivers of children 3 to 12 years old. HCHF uses a learner-centered dialogue approach, based on the Social Cognitive Theory, to engage participants in discussions and hands-on activities. This method aims to introduce behaviors (a.k.a. Paths to Success) most likely to prevent unhealthy weight gain and chronic disease, along with relevant parenting skills (a.k.a. Keys to Success) to help participants in supporting their families’ with these behavior changes. Sessions are scripted to ensure ease of delivery and are structured using the 4A Dialogue Approach to increase participant engagement. Each of the 8 sessions focuses on a specific behavior, and provides participants an opportunity to learn and apply one or more new parenting skills. These sessions are once per week and last 1.5 hours. Additionally, each session includes tasting a healthy recipe and an “active play break” to help parents practice activities they can take home and do with their children.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time

Intervention Type: Direct Education

Eat Smart to Play Hard

Eat Smart to Play Hard (ESPH) is a four-week social marketing campaign in which the community collaborates to engage students, parents, teachers, school staff, and other stakeholders in a common goal to “Eat Smart” in order to “Play Hard.” This obesity prevention campaign specifically focuses on increasing fruit and vegetable consumption among 8–11-year-olds in both rural and urban schools. During the campaign, students receive an activity booklet “Fun Book” that guides them through healthy eating and physical activities at home with their families. They return their Fun Book to school each week to receive a stamp from their teacher for every completed activity in order to earn incentives and a medal.  ESPH coordinators hang promotional materials throughout the school and community to support the desired behavior. At the end of the six weeks, the campaign culminates in a fun day event where students and teachers celebrate their success while enjoying healthy eating and fun physical activity.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time

Intervention Type: Social Marketing, PSE Change

Bingocize®

Bingocize® is an evidence-based health promotion program that strategically combines the game of bingo, health education, and/or exercise. Trained facilitators may select between separate 10-week workshops that focus on exercise-only, exercise and falls prevention, or exercise and nutrition. Each workshop includes a facilitator’s script for each session, participants’ materials, and “take home” cards for participants to complete exercises and tasks at home to reinforce the weekly health education information. Participants play Bingocize® twice per week, with each 45–60-minute session consisting of exercises (range of motion, balance, muscle strengthening, and endurance exercises) and/or health education questions. Workshops can be delivered using a traditional in-person bingo game, along with printed curriculum facilitator and participants’ materials. However, facilitators and participants are recommended to use a stand-alone online version, Bingocize® Online, to play Bingocize® in-person or remotely. This adds a fun, interactive technology component to the original game. 

To view a short video of the program in action, visit https://youtu.be/meCfC0CU4fg 

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time

Intervention Type: Direct Education

One Healthy Breakfast Program

The One Healthy Breakfast Program (OHBP) is a direct education, social marketing, and PSE change intervention designed to improve home, community, and school food environments to ensure that every student starts their day with a healthy breakfast. Direct education is delivered by classroom teachers utilizing the Breakfast Learning Activities for Students and Teachers (BLAST) curriculum, an interactive lesson series that encourages students in grades 4-8 to learn behavior-changing skills through analyzing and evaluating foods and their food choices. Social marketing campaigns take place through branded promotional materials for use in schools and the community, monthly newsletters to families, and corner store social marketing to encourage students to choose healthy breakfast items. PSE change occurs through promotion of breakfast after the bell options in schools. These components are combined with community engagement to provide students and their families the tools needed to choose healthier options in the morning regardless of whether they eat at home, school, or at the corner store.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Food Insecurity/Food Assistance

Intervention Type: Direct Education, Social Marketing, PSE Change

Young at Heart Strength Training – A Fall Prevention Program (YAH)

The Young at Heart Strength Training – A Fall Prevention Program (YAH) is a direct education intervention designed to increase physical activity and reduce sedentary behaviors in older adults age >60 and/or in persons with disabilities. YAH classes meet for 1 hour, 2-3 times per week with at least one day of rest between classes for adequate recovery. There is a minimum of 32 sessions but can be ongoing without an end date. To maintain fidelity, all instructors are certified through an 8-hour training and must complete 4 hours of continuing education provided by Healthy Aging Association through the instructor meetings, which can be viewed via the internet. YAH classes are offered free of charge to all attendees. Classes are progressive and always consist of a warm-up, a movement phase with stretching and balance activities, followed by a cool-down.

Delivery Methods: In-Person or Virtual

Target Behavior: Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time

Intervention Type: Direct Education

VeggieBook, a mobile app for Android and iOS smartphones (VB)

VeggieBook is a social marketing and direct education intervention app that is designed to help users choose customized recipes and healthy eating tips which ultimately lead to increased vegetable-based preparation for meals at home. The app invites a user to create a new VeggieBook or SecretsBook. VeggieBooks are sets of recipes, each set built around 1 of 10 vegetables. A series of questions posed by the app helps users select recipes and food preparation tips of interest. Recipes use simple ingredients most households have and have been tested for user-appeal. SecretsBooks are 5 sets of illustrated ideas about food use and acquisition–Secrets to Better Breakfasts, Lunches, Dinners, Snacks, and Shopping. The app’s emphasis on users’ choices promotes just-in-time learning.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Food Insecurity/Food Assistance

Intervention Type: Direct Education, Social Marketing

Cooking for a Lifetime of Cancer Prevention

The Cooking for a Lifetime of Cancer Prevention (C4L program) is a direct education intervention designed to increase participant’s intention to: 1) implement nutrition and physical behaviors for cancer prevention (achieve and maintain a healthy weight, consume fruits and vegetables, limit red meat, avoid processed meat, choose whole grains, and limit alcohol, and meet US physical activity guidelines), and 2) be screened for breast, cervical, and/or colorectal cancer as age and sex appropriate. In addition, participants will be able to: 3) select and prepare healthy foods for an overall healthy lifestyle and for cancer prevention, and 4) eligible participants will be able to connect with referral to free and reduced cost cancer screening services through the Breast and Cervical Cancer Control Program (BCCP) or other cancer resources in their community. The one-time, three-hour workshop includes educational presentations that address SNAP-Ed outcomes, including encouraging healthy eating, increasing physical activity and reducing sedentary time, and improving food resource management.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time, Other: Cancer screening participation

Intervention Type: Direct Education

FNV

The FNV Campaign is a social marketing and PSE change intervention that aims to present fruits and vegetables in a way that is both fun and cool, ultimately shifting attitudes, behavior and social norms relative to healthy eating. The objectives of the FNV Campaign are to create positive attitudes toward fruits and vegetables and to drive increased consumption of fruits and vegetables in targeted communities amongst SNAP eligible audiences. Targeted at millennials, the FNV campaign uses humor and the power of local and/or national celebrity to voluntarily shift consumer behavior toward healthier dietary choices. The campaign’s recommended approach includes surround sound marketing through billboards, retail, and transit media placements and in advertising buys on social and digital media, but it can be customized and tailored based on individual campaign needs.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating

Intervention Type: Social Marketing, PSE Change

Create Better Health Curriculum

The Create Better Health (CBH) Curriculum is a direct education intervention designed to improve the nutrition and physical activity-related knowledge, skills, and self-efficacy of SNAP-Ed eligible adults to lead an active and healthy lifestyle with limited resources. CBH has a unique emphasis on improving food resource management through the use of “Create” concepts. “Create” concepts teach participants how to use foods they already have in their kitchen to create a variety of nourishing meals. CBH includes 8 lessons that are to be offered in a series of 6-8 classes. Nutrition educators are trained regularly to teach CBH classes all of which include a nutrition topic, physical activity discussion, and a hands-on (ideally) cooking demonstration that utilizes a “Create” concept. CBH addresses and evaluates individual level changes including short term readiness and capacity and medium–term changes over the course of a series, as well as long-term changes 6 months after participation in the areas of healthy eating, physical activity, and food resource management. CBH also includes a 1-year follow-up survey to evaluate long-term behavior changes. 

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time

Intervention Type: Direct Education

Common Threads: Small Bites Program

The Small Bites Program is a direct education intervention designed to increase nutrition knowledge, vegetable consumption, and variety of vegetables consumed. The curriculum teaches students about nutrition and healthy cooking through a series of eight (or more) 1-hour lessons combining nutrition and knife-free cooking. In every lesson, students prepare a healthy snack, using recipes that meet USDA Guidelines, and provide opportunities to learn about and reinforce nutrition concepts and cooking skills. The lessons are grade-level banded, suitable for the in-school or after-school setting and are designed to support core content learning in math, English Language Arts, and science.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating

Intervention Type: Direct Education

iCook 4-H: Cooking, Eating, and Playing Together

The iCook 4-H Program is a direct education intervention designed to reach the following objectives: increase cooking skills and culinary self-efficacy, improve openness to new foods, increase frequency and/or quality of meal time with family members, and decrease sedentary time. It is intended for out-of-school settings with the goal of promoting healthy lifestyles for 9- and 10-year-old youth and the adult who prepares their meals. Grounded in the Social Cognitive Theory, interactions among youth, adults, and leaders provide opportunities for observational learning, reciprocal role modeling, and building self-efficacy.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time, Other: Family engagement/communication and goal setting

Intervention Type: Direct Education

The Children’s Healthy Living (CHL) Program

The Children’s Healthy Living Program (CHL) is a direct education, social marketing, and PSE change intervention designed to help children ages 2-8 in pacific communities decrease sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) intake, increase water intake, increase fruit and vegetable intake, decrease recreational screen time, increase physical activity, and increase the duration of sleep. The CHL toolkit has 4 functions that partners can choose from: 1) strengthen and implement school wellness policies, 2) partner and advocate for environmental change, 3) promote the CHL message, and 4) train trainers (capacity building) that address healthy behaviors at multiple levels of the social ecological model. Nineteen specific activities are recommended under each of the 4 functions. These activities promote PSE changes through the development of community strengths and interests. 

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time

Intervention Type: Direct Education, Social Marketing, PSE Change

Fresh Conversations

Fresh Conversations (FC) is a direct education, newsletter-based intervention for seniors. FC targets behaviors known to reduce chronic disease burden and promote healthy aging. It promotes healthier food and beverage choices across food groups to move closer to Dietary Guidelines for Americans (eat a variety of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean protein, healthy fats—less sodium and added sugars) as well as support functional and active aging by promoting affordable and accessible physical activity strategies guided by the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans older adult recommendations. Participants meet monthly for 30-45 minute interactive sessions led by a trained facilitator. Each participant receives a 4-page newsletter. Facilitators use a companion facilitator guide with behavioral objectives, key nutrition messages, facilitation dialogue, activities and recipe tasting options. Each session is designed to be interactive with a group discussion, goal setting, physical activity discussion, and recipe tasting. Puzzles and games in the newsletter reinforce educational content.

Target Behavior:  Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time

Intervention Type: Direct Education

Healthy Nutrition Guidelines for LA County

The Healthy Food Procurement Initiative in Los Angeles County is a PSE Change intervention designed to improve the quality of food purchased and offered in food service contracts through the implementation of nutrition standards. In 2011, the County of Los Angeles (“County”) Board of Supervisors adopted Healthy Food Promotion in Los Angeles County Food Service Contracts, a motion aimed at County departmental food procurement policies and practices as they relate to nutrition. The motion established a process for the County’s Department of Public Health (DPH) to develop nutrition standards and/or healthy food procurement practices in new and renewing Requests for Proposals (RFP) for food service and vending contracts across County departments.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating

Intervention Type: PSE Change

CookShop

CookShop is a core nutrition education program of Food Bank For New York City, providing low-income children and adults with the knowledge and tools to adopt and enjoy a healthy diet and active lifestyle on a limited budget. With hands-on workshops reaching thousands of New Yorkers across all five boroughs, CookShop teaches nutrition and physical activity information, as well as cooking skills, fostering enthusiasm for fresh, affordable fruits, vegetables and other whole foods.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity

Intervention Type: Direct Education, PSE change

Food Hero

Food Hero is a multi-channel social marketing campaign designed to change family and community behaviors.  Food Hero includes an extensive evaluation process. The program is designed to increase fruit and vegetable consumption among low-income Oregonians, and components of the campaign have been used widely in other states and countries. 

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating

Intervention Type: Direct Education, PSE Change, Social Marketing

EatFresh

EatFresh.org is mobile-friendly website that was created for the SNAP-Ed population and the organizations that serve them. It provides practical resources and encouragement for individuals with varying levels of digital literacy, internet access, health awareness and culinary skills. EatFresh.org is a stand-alone indirect education resource, an extender for direct education interventions, and a useful tool for a variety of PSE strategies. Partners throughout California use EatFresh.org as a tool to direct their participants to healthy recipes during nutrition workshops, to look up preparation and storage tips for food received at food banks, and to apply for SNAP/Calfresh.  They promote the website by distributing recipe cards at health fairs and other indirect events and refer clients to the EatFresh.org Mini Course as a flexible direct education resource. The EatFresh.org Mini Course is a free online direct education course that features 15 SNAP-Ed self-paced topics that can be completed in any order. 

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating

Intervention Type: Direct Education, PSE Change

CATCH – Coordinated Approach to Child Health

The CATCH Program is a PSE change and direct education intervention that addresses the physical, mental, and emotional health of youth through its Mind-Heart-Body approach and coordinated framework. Program objectives include improving children’s nutrition choices, increasing physical activity, and creating a healthy school culture and climate that supports and empowers children in a developing and practicing positive health behaviors that support their physical, mental, and emotional well-being. Since 1988, CATCH has been empowering school communities to cultivate Whole Child wellness as a lever for student success and social equity.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity

Intervention Type: Direct Education, PSE Change

Cooking Matters at the Store

Cooking Matters at the Store is a free program that works with families to stretch their food budgets so their children get healthy meals at home. Cooking Matters at the Store is a conversation about skills that helps adults learners get the most nutrition for their food dollars.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Food Insecurity/Food Assistance

Intervention Type: Direct Education

Simply Cent$ible Nutrition

Simply Cent$ible Nutrition is an adult direct education intervention designed to help individuals and families with limited resources shop, cook, and eat healthier on a budget. Nutrition educators teach the 8-lesson hands-on series. Each lesson includes cooking a new recipe, physical activities, and interactive activities that help participants build skills and knowledge related to eating healthy, physical activity, food resource management, and food safety. Lessons are based on MyPlate and the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity and Reducing Screen Time, Other: Food Safety

Intervention Type: Direct Education

Healthy Kindergarten Initiative

The Healthy Kindergarten Initiative (KI) is a direct education and PSE Change intervention that includes an integrated, holistic approach to educating children and their caregivers about making healthy food choices and being physically active. Education is coupled with access; families are connected to local, healthy foods through innovative ways and community partnerships. Lessons integrating nutrition and healthy habits were developed to fit Pennsylvania educational standards; however, they can be adapted to meet the educational standards for other states. Learning how food grows and who grows it in combination with frequent food tastings and hands-on gardening may help increase fruit and vegetable consumption among young children. 

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity

Intervention Type: Direct Education, PSE Change

Out of School Nutrition and Physical Activity (OSNAP)

The Out of School Nutrition and Physical Activity (OSNAP) Initiative is a PSE change intervention designed to increase healthy nutrition and physical activity and reduce screen time for children, including the frequency with which water is served during snack at afterschool programs. By promoting water, the OSNAP Initiative decreases the caloric impact of beverages served in afterschool programs. OSNAP, through its interactive website, www.osnap.org, provides afterschool program staff and organizational leaders with resources to improve their program practices and policies related to healthy foods, drinks, and physical activity.  One component of the OSNAP initiative focuses on providing access to free drinking water at snack time for children in afterschool programs.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity

Intervention Type:  PSE Change

Youth Participatory Action Research Projects (YPAR)

Youth-led Participatory Action Research Projects (YPAR) engage youth in projects that address and promote nutrition and physical activity issues in their community. YPAR aims to empower youth and achieve policy, systems, and environmental change efforts related to health, nutrition, and physical activity. An adult ally works with the youth to help mentor, support, and facilitate the youth team. Through YPAR, youth engage in leadership, critical thinking, problem solving, strategizing skills, and service learning to address their target issue related to nutrition and physical activity. 

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity

Intervention Type: Direct Education, PSE Change

Eat Smart in Parks (ESIP)

Eat Smart in Parks (ESIP) is a PSE change and social marketing intervention designed to promote healthier eating in Missouri’s state and local parks. The effort includes the development of a model ESIP policy that guides parks in serving healthier options, training for state and local parks to assist them with using the guidelines, and materials to promote healthier items.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating

Intervention Type: PSE Change, Social Marketing

Health Bucks

The Health Bucks program is a PSE change intervention that distributes $2 coupons redeemable for fresh locally grown fruits and vegetables at New York City (NYC) farmers markets. Health Bucks increase purchasing power and help New Yorkers with low incomes access fresh fruits and vegetables. Health Bucks are distributed several ways, including to customers at farmers markets paying with Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. The Health Bucks SNAP incentive increases markets’ SNAP sales and makes markets more profitable(1). This makes it financially possible for local farmers to participate in markets in areas that historically have been less profitable and affects the physical environment by increasing access to and availability of fresh produce. Health Bucks affects a neighborhood’s social environment by incentivizing to shop at local farmers markets.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating

Intervention Type: PSE Change

Eating Smart • Being Active

Eating Smart • Being Active is a direct education healthy eating, active living intervention designed for paraprofessional nutrition peer educators to use when teaching low-income families to learn healthy lifestyle choices. The curriculum consists of nine core lessons, designed to be taught in order, and three optional infant and maternal lessons designed to be taught to pregnant women and new parents. The teaching techniques in the lesson plans of Eating Smart • Being Active are based on social cognitive theory and include adult learning principles, dialogue-based learning and learner-centered education. 

Target Behavior: Breastfeeding, Healthy Eating, Physical Activity

Intervention Type:  Direct Education

Bienestar Health Program

The Bienestar Health Program is a direct education, culturally tailored school-based diabetes mellitus prevention program for low-income Mexican-American children. There are four components to Bienestar: 1) health and physical education classes, 2) an after-school health club, 3) family activities, and 4) a food service component. These components cohesively address the individual, relevant social groups, culture, and health promotion environment that support behaviors consistent with diabetes mellitus prevention. The Bienestar Health Program is delivered over 7 months during the school year.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity

Intervention Type: Direct Education

Cooking Matters

Cooking Matters is helping end childhood hunger by inspiring families to make healthy, affordable food choices. Cooking Matters teaches participants to shop smarter, use nutrition information to make healthier choices and cook delicious, affordable meals. Cooking Matters provides professional-level curricula and instructional materials, and evaluation, while local program partners provide hands-on, grassroots-level resources, program customizations and relationships that are best addressed on the local level.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Food Insecurity/Food Assistance

Intervention Type: Direct Education

Pick a better snack™

Pick a better snackTM is a direct education and social marketing intervention that aims to increase fruit and vegetable consumption and promote daily physical activity among children. The program is designed to influence children’s preference for fruits and vegetables and the snacks they request at home. Nutrition educators deliver monthly lessons and fruit and vegetable tasings during the school day to kindergarten through third grade classes. Family newsletters and health-themed bingo cards are sent home to engage parents. Two complimentary community-based social marketing campaigns, Pick a better snack and Play Your Way, further support healthy eating and physical activity behavior change.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity

Intervention Type: Direct Education, Social Marketing

PE-Nut™

PE-Nut™ is a direct education and PSE change intervention that provides a whole-school approach to motivate students, and families to be physically active and eat healthier. Physical educators, classroom teachers and school administrators work together with parents and communities to improve nutrition and physical activity in schools (PreK – grade 5) or community settings. The program consists of several components: quality physical education (K-5) including reinforcement of nutrition concepts, nutrition education and physical activity breaks in the classrooms, Health Through Literacy take home/family and classroom/teacher book bags; daily school announcements; school and family newsletters; and parent engagement events. PE-Nut lends itself to be an addition to interventions such as the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program, gardening, etc. The overall goal of PE-Nut™ is to improve the school nutrition and physical activity environment and affect healthy behavior change by involving teachers and administrators to provide consistent messages throughout the school and/or community.

Target Learning Objectives for Individual Behavior Change:

  • Increase physical activity
  • Increase consumption of fruits and vegetables
  • Try new foods to increase variety
  • Choose healthy snacks.
  • Wash hands before eating.

Goals for improving the Classroom and School Environment:

  • Healthy Classroom Parties
  • Non-food rewards
  • School staff and Student role modeling
  • Consistent school wide messaging

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity

Intervention Type: Direct Education, PSE Change

Healthy Choices Catch On

Since 2006, Michigan Fitness Foundation’s SNAP-Ed Social Marketing campaigns have been effectively engaging and influencing nutrition and physical activity behaviors among SNAP-Ed eligible residents in Michigan. The current campaign, Healthy Choices Catch On is modeled on the USDA Core Message that emphasizes parents as a child’s role model and first teacher. Like past MFF campaigns, Grow Your Kids and They Learn from Watching you, the Healthy Choices Catch On campaign messages, images, videos, and distribution methods through traditional and digital platforms work as behavior nudges to move people along the transtheoretical model of behavior change. The six stages of change are pre-contemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, maintenance, and termination.

Primary Intervention Objectives:

  • Influence healthy eating and physical activity behaviors of SNAP-Ed eligible populations.
  • Reinforce the importance of parents and caregivers as healthy behavior role models for children.
  • Promote messages aligned with SNAP-Ed direct education and policy, systems, and environmental initiatives, creating community wrap-around.

Core messages of the 2020 Campaign are:

  • Show them the way: eat fruits and veggies every day
  • Show them the way: go out and play

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity

Intervention Type: Social Marketing

HEALth MAPPS™ for Mapping Healthy Eating Active Living Assets using Participatory Photographic Surveys

HEALth MAPPS™ is a SNAP-Ed facilitated, community-engaged, socio–environmental determinants of health (SDOH) discovery and learning intervention. HEALth MAPPS™ mobilizes community partners – sectors, organizations, and residents to assess people’s (i.e., SNAP-Ed audiences’) lived experience of place-based resources, and to plan implement PSE intervention strategies that increase and to ease local access to environmental resources for healthy eating and physical activity (HEAL). HEALth MAPPS™ engages people in participatory action research (PAR) to accomplish two objectives: (1) document community/neighborhood environmental assets, the SDOH that residents experience as helping or hindering their behaviors and patterns; (2) assess neighborhood/community resources and readiness to take action. Community partners use local data to plan and implement PSE strategies to support and sustain healthy lifestyle behaviors among priority youth and adult populations.  The MAPPS™ method integrates participatory photography and community mapping using global positioning system (GPS) technology, and residents’ voiced perceptions of their community’s socio-environmental determinants to explore, understand, and improve the culture and context for HEAL equity. 

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating, Physical Activity

Intervention Type: PSE Change

Stock Healthy, Shop Healthy

Stock Healthy, Shop Healthy is a PSE and social marketing intervention designed to increase consumer demand for healthy foods in communities and to increase amount of healthy foods sold by urban corner stores and rural small food retailers. Stock Healthy, Shop Healthy is a comprehensive, multi-component, community-based initiative that allows communities to improve access to healthy, affordable foods by working with small food retailers. Through toolkits, resources, and webinars, Stock Healthy, Shop Healthy will guide any community through a unique approach to increasing access to healthy foods that involves engaging small food retailers and community members, and thus addresses supply and demand at the same time.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating

Intervention Type: Social Marketing, PSE Change

Walk With Ease

Walk With Ease is a direct education program that is designed to promote education about successful physical activity for people with arthritis, arthritis self-management and walking safely and comfortably. Walk With Ease also encourages participants to continue their walking program and explore other exercise and self-management programs that deliver proven benefits for people with arthritis. Walk With Ease can be done by individuals using the Walk With Ease guidebook on their own or by groups led by trained leaders. While walking is the central activity, Walk With Ease is a multi-component program that also includes health education, stretching and strengthening exercises, and motivational strategies.

Camine Con Gusto is the Spanish language and Hispanic/Latinx cultural adaption of the Walk With Ease program. See the Spanish language description of Walk With Ease in italics below:

Camine con gusto es un programa de acondicionamiento físico que puede reducir el dolor y mejorar la salud en general. Si puede pararse por 10 minutos sin sentir dolor, puede beneficiarse de Camine con gusto. Beneficios de Camine con gusto incluyen:

  • Motivación para aumentar su capacidad física.
  • Caminar con comodidad y seguridad.
  • Aumentar su flexibilidad, fortaleza y resistencia.
  • Reducir el dolor y sentirse muy bien.

En los estudios realizados por el Centro Thurston de Investigación sobre la Artritis (Thurston Arthritis Research Center) y por el Instituto de Envejecimiento (Institute on Aging) de la Universidad de Carolina del Norte, se demostró que Camine con gusto reduce el dolor, aumenta el equilibrio y fuerza, y mejora la salud en general.

Target Behavior: Physical Activity

Intervention Type: Direct Education

Farm to School

Farm to school is a Policy, Systems, and Environmental (PSE) change and direct education intervention designed to improve access to local foods in pre-k to 12th grade school settings and provides education opportunities that encourage healthy eating behaviors. Farm to school empowers children and their families to make informed food choices while strengthening the local economy and contributing to vibrant communities. Each farm to school program is unique, but often combines elements of local procurement or serving food from local producers in meals and snacks, alongside food, nutrition, and agriculture education in the classroom and beyond, such as the cafeteria and school garden. 

PSE backing for farm to school make farm to school practices the norm in classrooms and cafeterias throughout the year. Policy efforts focus on integrating farm to school supports into organizational statements and positions, such as procurement policies, wellness policies, and resolutions. Systems change include those that make organizational procedures and programs more supportive of farm to school. Examples include hiring farm to school or garden staff, partnering with distributors to carry and label local product, creating a grant program to fund school gardens, and building local or State-wide farm to school coalitions. Environmental changes are observable in your physical or social surroundings. Farm to school environmental supports may include, but are not limited to, local foods promotional and marketing materials, school gardens/farms, and food systems courses and classes. 

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating

Intervention Type: Direct Education, PSE Change

Pick it! Try it! Like it! (PTL)

Pick it! Try it! Like it! (PTL) is a direct education and social marketing intervention which aims to increase consumption of fruits and vegetables by providing consumer information on selecting and preparing fresh produce. PTL materials are filled with tips for selecting, exploring, and cooking a wide variety of fruits and vegetables. Factual information complements simple, healthy, and tested recipes. Integrated lessons with food preparation activities assists with increasing knowledge and skills for all ages. Colorful fact sheets, recipe cards, and educational videos provide educators and families with fun, engaging tools to enhance any dietary curriculum in a variety of settings.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating

Intervention Type: Direct Education, Social Marketing 

Healthy Behaviors Initiative (HBI)

The Healthy Behaviors Initiative (HBI) is an after school (AS) program designed to enable and recognize on-site staff to offer practical, user-friendly and effective nutrition, physical activity (PA), and food security intervention activities. HBI is a multi-level effort for the children, site staff, sponsoring organizations, and the multi-county Superintendent regions to complement in-school and community resources. A key to success in the infrastructure is the opportunity for AS programs to become certified by the Center for Collaborative Solutions as a HBI Learning Center. Learning Centers provide modeling, peer support, mentoring, and exchange among AS sites in their geographic areas.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating; Physical Activity

Intervention Type: PSE Change

Michigan Harvest to Table

Michigan Harvest to Table™ (MiHarvest) (formerly called Michigan Harvest of the Month™ (HOTM)) is a multi-level intervention designed to increase consumption of and access to fruits and vegetables; increase consumption of locally grown produce by connecting growers to schools in their communities, retail, farmers market, and emergency food settings; and link child-focused nutrition education in schools with adult-focused supports in community based food access settings. MiHarvest™ features ready-to-go supplemental nutrition education materials that can easily be integrated into the core curriculum and are aligned with the current Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating

Intervention Type: Direct Education, Social Marketing, PSE Change

Cooking with Kids BIG little Project

Cooking with Kids BIG little Project is a school-based food nutrition education curriculum program designed to educate and empower children and families to make healthy food choices through hands-on learning with fresh, affordable foods from diverse cultural traditions.  The program uses three nutrition education and obesity prevention approaches: direct education, multi-level interventions at multiple complementary organizational and institutional levels, and community and public health approaches to improve nutrition. Cooking with Kids BIG little Project includes integrated curriculum guides (bilingual and grade-specific) with cooking and tasting lessons, how-to-videos, recipes, and other resources. Cooking with Kids, Inc. provides nutrition education in SNAP-Ed qualifying public schools and supports community and public health approaches, including the development of teaching kitchens in schools and the support of Farm to School and Child Nutrition Program staff training. 

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating

Intervention Type: Direct Education, PSE Change

Just Say Yes to Fruits and Vegetables (JSY)

Just Say Yes to Fruits and Vegetables (JSY) is a direct education and PSE change intervention designed to promote health and reduce long-term chronic disease risks through the promotion of increased fruit and vegetable consumption. Using nutrition education workshops, food demonstrations, and promotion of healthy food pantry best practices JSY works to ensure SNAP-eligible adults and families in New York eat nutritious foods, make the most of their food budgets, prepare foods in a safe manner, increase physical activity, and drink healthier beverages. 

Target Behavior: Healthy Eating

Intervention Type: Direct Education, PSE Change