CARDIOVASCULAR HEALTH EDUCATION SOFTWARE

THE DINE SYSTEM, A NUTRIENT ANALYSIS, DIET IMPROVEMENT, MICROCOMPUTER SOFTWARE PROGRAM WAS MODIFIED FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL STUDENTS AND THEIR TEACHERS FOR USE IN CARDIOVASCULAR HEALTH AND NUTRITION EDUCATION PROGRAMS. THE AIMS OF THE PROJECT INVOLVED 1.REVISING DIETARY GUIDELINES TO REFLECT THE NUTRIENT NEEDS OF CHILDREN, 2.EXPANDING AND UPDATING THE DATABASE AND SELECTED NUTRIENTS APPROPRIATE FOR CHILDREN, 3.ENHANCING THE COMPUTER PROGRAM FOR USE BY CHILDREN AND THEIR TEACHERS, AND 4.CONDUCTING END-USER REVIEWS WITH MIDDLE-LEVEL SCHOOL CHILDREN FOR PROGRAM ADEQUACY. DURING THE MODIFICATION OF THE SOFTWARE, ONE EXPERT PANEL REVIEWED THE NUTRITIONAL GUIDELINES AND EDUCATIONAL SUITABILITY, AND ANOTHER EXPERT PANEL REVIEWED THE COMPUTER SCIENCE TECHNIQUES AND PROCEDURES. THE DEVELOPED PROGRAM FEATURES AN ON-SCREEN CURSOR-CONTROLLED FOOD VERIFICATION TECHNIQUE TO IMPROVE ACCURACY OF INPUT DATA, A PERSONAL FOOD DISK PROCEDURE TO ALLOW THE USER TO DEVELOP AN INDIVIDUALIZED DATABASE, AND A NUTRITIONAL SCORING TECHNIQUE TO INDICATE BOTH A LEVEL OF NUTRITIONAL COMPLIANCE AND A GENERAL INDEX OF EATING BEHAVIOR. THE PHASE II PROJECT PROPOSES TO FURTHER IMPROVE THE SOFTWARE AND RELATED PERIPHERALS, AND ESTABLISH THE VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY OF THE SYSTEM FOR RESEARCH AND PROGRAMMATIC USE IN THE NATION'S SCHOOLS.