Clinical trial NCT03400566: Effects of Experiential Learning on Vegetable Intake in Preschool Children
Official title: Effects of Congruent and In-congruent Experiential Learning on Intake of a Novel Vegetable in Preschool Children
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: COMPLETED
Phase: NA
Conditions: Food Habits
Food Preferences
Health Behavior
Diet Habit
Child Behavior
Lead sponsor: University of Leeds
Sponsor class: OTHER
Collaborators: name: Economic and Social Research Council, United Kingdom
name: Purely Nutrition Ltd
First posted: 2018-01-17
Enrollment: 337
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 2
Maximum age (years): 5
Standard ages: CHILD
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Primary purpose: BASIC_SCIENCE

Brief summary: The aim of this cluster randomized control trial is to test the efficacy of providing experience of a target novel vegetable within the context of an interactive story time to increase intake of the target novel vegetable in preschool aged children (aged 2-5 years).

Detailed description: The aim of this study is to test the efficacy of providing experience of a target novel vegetable within the context of an interactive story time to increase intake of the target novel vegetable in preschool aged children (aged 2-5 years). In particular, the study will assess whether these strategies are effective to encourage intake of an unfamiliar vegetable in children who are fussy eaters.

There are two manipulations in this study - the provision of a story which features either a target vegetable (celeriac) or a control vegetable (carrot) and the presence of experiential learning (smelling, touching, looking at the vegetable) with either the target vegetable or the control vegetable.

Baseline consumption and familiarity of the target veg will be assessed for all children, before the intervention. The intervention consists of two familiarization trials, and 2-weeks of access to a story book featuring vegetables. Following the final familiarization trial, consumption and familiarity will be assessed again. Each familiarization trial consists of a story in class, and depending on condition, an experiential learning episode in class. During the 2 week interval between familiarization sessions nurseries will be requested to ready the story book 5 times in the preschool room (at times convenient to them).

Participants will be cluster randomized into 4 groups (2X2 between subjects design): 1) target vegetable narrative, 2) target vegetable narrative + experiential, 3) control vegetable narrative 4) control vegetable narrative + experiential

Child's food fussiness data will be collected by parents using the Food Fussiness sub scale of the Child Eating Behaviour Questionnaire. Their usual consumption of the target vegetable will also be measured using parent report.

Nursery staff will be requested to provide feedback to evaluate intervention feasibility, barriers and efficacy.

It is predicted that children's intake of the novel vegetable will vary by intervention. The primary hypothesis to be tested is that providing experience of a target novel vegetable within the context of an interactive story time will encourage preschoolers to taste, try and eat the target vegetable.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* 2 to 5 years old
* Attends nursery on selected test day

Exclusion Criteria:

* Relevant food allergy (celeriac / celery)
* Medical condition which would prevent them from eating the test vegetable

Primary outcomes:
measure: Change in intake of the target vegetable
timeFrame: Change in intake of the target vegetable from Baseline to day 14
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Knowledge of the target vegetable
timeFrame: Knowledge of the target vegetable at day 14 (post intervention)
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Leeds
country: United Kingdom
facility: School of Psychology, University of Leeds
state: West Yorkshire
Study officials:
affiliation: University of Leeds
name: Chandani Nekitsing, MSc
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References:
citation: Nekitsing C, Blundell-Birtill P, Cockroft JE, Fildes A, Hetherington MM. Increasing Intake of an Unfamiliar Vegetable in Preschool Children Through Learning Using Storybooks and Sensory Play: A Cluster Randomized Trial. J Acad Nutr Diet. 2019 Dec;119(12):2014-2027. doi: 10.1016/j.jand.2019.05.017. Epub 2019 Aug 1.
citation: Nekitsing C, Blundell-Birtill P, Cockroft JE, Hetherington MM. Taste Exposure Increases Intake and Nutrition Education Increases Willingness to Try an Unfamiliar Vegetable in Preschool Children: A Cluster Randomized Trial. J Acad Nutr Diet. 2019 Dec;119(12):2004-2013. doi: 10.1016/j.jand.2019.05.012. Epub 2019 Aug 1.