Background Efforts to combat the epidemic of childhood obesity have approached the issue from many different angles, with a family approach being the gold standard. While most efforts focus on the parents, few have viewed the child as the agent of change. In this study, we explored the feasibility of implementing a cooking curriculum into a summer day camp to determine its reception and explore the potential of home reach. Methods In partnership with a local YMCA, a child-focused cooking curriculum was developed, designed to be delivered to various age groups with key nutritional messages. Interviews were conducted with participating children and their parents to determine acceptability and potential to influence the home environment as well as explore children's understanding of nutrition and cooking topics. Results Children in the study ranged from 7 to 15 years of age. Children overwhelmingly enjoyed the cooking camp and talked about it with their parents at home. Almost all parents had plans to try the recipes at home, and many had already made one or more of the recipes. Conclusions It is feasible to incorporate cooking lessons into a children's summer day camp, with some evidence of reach into the home. Future studies should evaluate children as agents of change in cooking and meal preparation, and assess if this could increase the number and quality of family meals.

中文翻译：

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试点夏令营烹饪课程以影响家庭膳食。


背景 对抗儿童肥胖流行的努力已经从许多不同的角度解决了这个问题，其中家庭方法是黄金标准。虽然大多数努力都集中在父母身上，但很少有人将孩子视为变革的推动者。在这项研究中，我们探讨了在夏令营中实施烹饪课程的可行性，以确定其受欢迎程度并探索家庭影响力的潜力。方法 与当地基督教青年会合作，开发了以儿童为中心的烹饪课程，旨在向各个年龄段的人传达关键的营养信息。我们对参与的儿童及其父母进行了访谈，以确定其接受程度和影响家庭环境的潜力，并探讨儿童对营养和烹饪主题的理解。结果 研究中的儿童年龄范围为 7 至 15 岁。孩子们非常喜欢烹饪营，并在家里与父母谈论这件事。几乎所有父母都计划在家尝试这些食谱，并且许多人已经制作了一种或多种食谱。结论 将烹饪课程纳入儿童夏令营是可行的，并且有一些证据表明烹饪课程已深入家庭。未来的研究应该评估儿童作为烹饪和膳食准备方面变化的推动者，并评估这是否可以增加家庭膳食的数量和质量。