STRENGTHENING RESPONSIVE FEEDING AND RESPONSIVE PARENTING PRACTICES IN HEAD START/EARLY HEAD START FAMILIES: A POLICY, SYSTEMS, AND ENVIRONMENTAL APPROACH

Nearly half of all children in Syracuse, NY live in poverty, putting at risk their cognitive, social, and behavioral development and health. The myriad challenges faced by families living below poverty undermine healthful eating intentions, contributing to increased rates of childhood overweight and obesity. In New York State, nearly 24% of children enrolled in Head Start/Early Head Start (HS/EHS) are overweight or obese. In Syracuse, People’s Equal Action & Community Effort (PEACE) Inc. operates HS/EHS and provides families and children with nutrition education opportunities. Despite knowledge of and belief in healthy eating, parents/caregivers face mealtime barriers such as lack of time, selective eating behaviors, limited healthy food access, and exposure to unhealthy food marketing messages. Interviews with PEACE Inc. employees revealed that families are interested in greater support to address these issues. Using a policy, systems and environmental (PSE) approach, a multi-level intervention is planned to: 1) establish policies at HS/EHS and other preschool programs that support responsive feeding/parenting practices, 2) create resource teams that connect programs to additional services, and 3) assist programs in the adoption of environmental changes that promote responsive feeding/parenting practices. The intervention also includes nutrition education for preschoolers age 2-5 years and their parents/caregivers in the form of nine lessons paired with group discussions. Outcome evaluation measures include: ability to demonstrate understanding of key lesson topics and ability to plan for and implement responsive feeding/parenting strategies, increased fruit and vegetable intake, and lower rates of childhood overweight and obesity.