Food for Life: Healthier Meals Elders can Live With

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Americans are coming to realize that our typical diet is unhealthy - that we tend to consume an excess of food that are dense in calories, e.g., fats and sugar, and are high in sodium, and too little of foods that are dense with nutrients and fiber, e.g., fruits and vegetables and whole grains. The importance of these dietary choices increases as we age - for example, with changes in metabolism, body composition, nutrient absorption, and energy expenditures. Yet, older people are especially likely to have learned to select and prepare food in an era that preceded this knowledge, and are increasingly likely to rely on processes or prepared foods. The specific aims of this Phase II SBIR are: 1. to produce an innovative educational package about healthy eating for older adults who prepare most of their meals. Such a package is not currently available. This will involve (a) finalizing and producing a video kit (25-minute video and printed materials) for participants, and (b) developing and producing a training manual for facilitators to use the kit in a 2-hour workshop. 2. To rigorously evaluate the effectiveness of using the package in a workshop in improving participants' diet. PROPOSED COMMERCIAL APPLICATION: NOT AVAILABLE