Dietary self-efficacy and social support interactions in junior athletes' acquisition of life skills

Objective

According to the stages of change, this study identified the association between dietary control self-efficacy and social support for healthy diets as factors influencing life skills acquisition in dietary habits among adolescents in Japan.

Research design

This cross-sectional study was conducted between April and May 2018 among eight high school baseball teams in Japan.

Method

Participants included 180 Japanese high school baseball players. Survey items evaluated life skills (dependent variables), self-efficacy's influence on dietary control, social support (explanatory variables), and stages of change. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis was used to reveal the associations.

Results

In the pre-action stage, although there was no significant association between the interaction of self-efficacy and social support on total life skills (β = 0.11, p = 0.158), a significant association was observed in the action/maintenance stage (β = 0.32, p < 0.05). The interaction between self-efficacy and social support showed a significant association with goal setting in the pre-action stage (β = 0.19, p < 0.05) and with communicating in the action/maintenance stage (β = 0.34, p < 0.05).

Conclusion

The acquisition of life skills amidst dietary situations can be facilitated by providing social support that considers self-efficacy in relation to dietary control, according to the stages of change.

The effect of a school-based fruit and vegetable promotion program on adolescents' fruit and vegetable consumption behavior in Turkey

PURPOSE

The aim of this study was to analyze the effect of a school-based F&V promotion program developed in line with the transtheoretical model (TTM) on the consumption behavior of middle school students.

DESIGN AND METHODS

The study was designed as semi-experimental research with pre-/post- and follow-up tests and a control group. It was conducted at a total of six middle schools in the district of Fethiye/Muğla, Turkey. Three of the schools were selected with the random clustering method as an intervention group and the others as the control group. The F&V promotion program was executed in the intervention group for a period of 24 weeks.

RESULTS

It was found in the 6th and 12th months after the intervention that the daily number of portions of fruits (p<.01) and vegetables (p<.01) consumed by the students in the intervention group was significantly more compared to the control group. The perception of the pros of F&V consumption and self-efficacy in the intervention group were higher than in the controls (p<.01).

CONCLUSIONS

The school-based F&V consumption promotion program was effective in increasing the number of portions of fruits and vegetables students consumed and in improving their behaviors in this regard.

APPLICATION TO PRACTICE

The study indicates that the interventions described may be recommended to school nurses for use in their efforts to increase levels of F&V consumption.

Transtheoretical model-based nutritional interventions in adolescents: a systematic review

BACKGROUND

Literature has shown a tendency of inadequate dietary intake among youth, consequently, nutritional interventions are required. The transtheoretical model (TTM) classifies individuals based on their readiness to change. This model is widely used for health education interventions with proven efficacy.

PURPOSE

This review aimed to weigh the strength of evidence about the TTM usage in nutritional interventions for adolescents and its effectiveness regarding dietary intake.

METHODS

This study followed the PRISMA guidelines. Eligible studies were input into Mendeley software. The Adolec, Google Scholar, LILACS, PsycINFO, PubMed, Science Direct and Web of Science databases were searched. Only full original articles written in English, Spanish or Portuguese on randomized controlled trials and quasi-experimental designs that applied the TTM in the design of nutritional interventions targeting adolescents were included, with no restrictions on publication date. The quality and risk of bias was evaluated with the Effective Public Health Practice Project Quality Assessment Tool for Quantitative Studies.

RESULTS

The initial search yielded 3779 results. Three studies were rated as strong, six as moderate and five as weak. The final sample of 14 articles included adolescents that were mostly recruited from schools, with interventions ranging from one month to three years. The TTM was used alone or combined with other behavior-change theories and most of the interventions involved digital technology. The nutritional topics covered included fruit and vegetable consumption, low-fat diet, and cooking skills. Four studies presented improvement in fruit and vegetable consumption and four progressed through stages of change. Participants from two interventions reduced fat intake. At the end of one intervention, all the participants were in action and maintenance stages.

CONCLUSION

The TTM seems to be a successful strategy for nutritional intervention aiming at improving dietary intake in adolescents. Its application in different contexts shows that the TTM is flexible and possible to be implemented in many settings. The use of the model is shown to be restricted to the stage of change' construct. Further studies should use all constructs of the TTM in the design and compare the TTM with other behavior-change theories to better understand its effectiveness.