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Canadian Journal of Public Health = Revue Canadienne de Santé Publique logoLink to Canadian Journal of Public Health = Revue Canadienne de Santé Publique
. 2008 Mar 1;99(2):107–113. doi: 10.1007/BF03405455

Assessing the Impact of the Primary School-based Nutrition Intervention Petits cuistots — parents en réseaux

Sherri L Bisset 17,✉, Louise Potvin 17, Mark Daniel 27, Manon Paquette 17
PMCID: PMC6975648  PMID: 18457283

Abstract

Objectives

This study sought to provide an intermediate impact assessment of the nutrition intervention Petits cuistots — parents en réseaux (Little Cooks — Parental Networks) on: 1) knowledge, attitude, capacity and experience with regard to nutrition, diet and cookery, and 2) parental and/or family participation in school.

Participants

A total of 388 students from grades 5 (participants) and 6 (non-participants).

Setting

The evaluation of the nutrition intervention took place in each of the seven participating elementary schools, all of which are located in Montreal’s most disadvantaged neighbourhoods.

Intervention

The program component “Little Cooks” is a nutrition workshop run by community dieticians. Each of the eight annual workshops features a food item and nutrition theme with a recipe for a collective food preparation and tasting experience. Classroom teachers participate to provide classroom management and program support. The “Parental Networks” component of the program invites parents to assist with the nutrition workshop, and offers additional parent and family activities which link to nutrition workshop themes (e.g., dinners or visits to local food producers).

Outcome

The program had some impact on knowledge of the nutrient content of food, food produce and cooking; attitude and experience with tasting of new or less common foods; and perceived cooking capacity. Families with students participating in the program participated more in school activities than did families of students not in the program.

Conclusions

Our assessment indicates a potential program impact upon several intermediate impact measures, and in so doing highlights a promising nutrition capacity-promoting intervention.

Key words: Program evaluation, primary schools, food habits, health promotion

Footnotes

Acknowledgements: This study was supported by a doctorate research bursary awarded to Sherri Bisset from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research R0012607. Louise Potvin holds a Chair in Community Approaches and Health Inequalities (CHSRF/CIHR: # CPI 022605). Mark Daniel holds a Canada Research Chair for Biopsychosocial Pathways in Population Health. Approval to collect data for this study was obtained from the University of Montreal Ethical Review Committee in the Faculty of Medicine (CERFM 59(04) 4#1 39). This research benefited from input from Johanne Bedard, Faculty of Education, University of Sherbrooke who provided editing and input on survey questions, and would not have been possible without the coordination of Jocelyne Bernier, Chaire (CHSRF-CIHR) Approches communautaires et inégalités de santé.

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