Research-Tested Intervention Programs: Program Details

Highlights

Program Title	Body & Soul
Purpose	Community-based program designed to increase fruit and vegetable consumption. (2004)
Program Focus	Behavior Modification
Population Focus	Faith-based Groups
Topic	Diet/Nutrition
Age	Adults (40-65 years), Older Adults (65+ years), Young Adults (19-39 years)
Gender	Female, Male
Race/Ethnicity	Black, not of Hispanic or Latino origin
Setting	Religious establishments, Suburban, Urban/Inner City
Origination	United States
Funded by	NCI (Grant number(s) not available.), American Cancer Society (Grant number(s) not available.)
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RTIPs Scores

This program has been rated by external peer reviewers.

Research Integrity

Intervention Impact

Dissemination Capability

(1.0 = low 5.0 = high)

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RE-AIM Scores

This program has been evaluated on criteria from the RE-AIM framework, which helps translate research into action.

Reach

20.0%

Effectiveness

33.3%

Adoption

50.0%

Implementation

85.7%

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The Need

Church-based nutrition interventions offer a unique opportunity to increase fruit and vegetable consumption among African Americans. For fruit and vegetable promotion programs to be widely implemented, they must be proven effective even when delivered by nonprofessional personnel, who receive less training and supervision than those carrying out efficacy studies. Black Churches United for Better Health and Eat for Life are two nutrition education programs that have been efficacy tested and combined to undergo effectiveness testing in this investigation.

The Program

Body and Soul is a combination of the effective components from the Black Churches United for Better Health and Eat for Life programs. The components include church-wide nutrition activities such as: a kick-off event, forming a project committee, conducting at least three nutrition events, plus one additional event involving the pastor, and making at least one policy change (e.g., establishing guidelines for the types of foods served at church functions or changing snacks served at youth camps). Additional church-wide activities include hosting guest speakers and cooking demonstrations and taste tests, and providing self-help materials such as a cookbook, video, and educational pamphlets. A Peer Counseling Training DVD product is available, however, it was not included as part of the original study. Lay church volunteers conduct at least two motivational counseling calls to members as well.

Time Required

Implementation time of church-wide activities varies. Volunteer church liaisons used to recruit members and promote the project received 1 to 2 hours of training. Each church received a copy of an 18-minute video. Lay counselors received 12-16 hours of training and conducted at least two motivational calls to approximately five church members; each call was roughly 15 minutes long.

Intended Audience

Participants were African American church members aged 17 to 89 years living in California, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Delaware, and Virginia; 74% were women, 58% were married or living with a partner, 50% had an annual household income of $50,000 or more, and 67% reported at least some college education.

Suitable Settings

The intervention is suitable for implementation in the church and home settings.

Required Resources

The video, "Forgotten Miracles", the "Eat for Life" cookbook, and the church guidebook, "Body & Soul: A Celebration of Healthy Eating & Living" are required. A Peer Counseling Training DVD is also available. Costs associated with program implementation are not provided.

About the Study

A total of 15 churches, with 1,022 participants from California, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Delaware and Virginia were randomly assigned to the Body and Soul intervention or to a comparison group. Church-wide events and environmental changes for Body and Soul sites were aimed at the entire congregation and included inviting guest speakers, sponsoring food demonstrations, watching a video, and implementing food policy changes to increase the availability of fruits and vegetables. Consenting participants received two motivational interviewing calls from lay counselors, a cookbook, and several educational pamphlets. Fruit and vegetable intake was measured at baseline and 6-month follow-up.

Results indicated:

At 6-month follow-up, Body and Soul participants consumed more fruits and vegetables per day than control participants.

Graph of Study Results

Body and Soul participants decreased their percentage of calories from fat; were more motivated to eat fruits and vegetables; and had greater self-efficacy and social supports to eat fruits and vegetables compared to control participants.

Related Programs

The Body & Soul program is related to the following:

Please click on the related program(s) to review.

Eat for Life in that:

They are by the same developer/investigator with the same theoretical basis, focus but have different materials that are designed for different target audiences.

Healthy Body Healthy Spirit in that:

They are by the same developer/investigator with the same theoretical basis, focus but have different materials that are designed for different target audiences.

Publications

Primary

Resnicow K, Kramish Campbell M, Carr C, McCarty F, Wang T, Periasamy S, Rahotep S, Doyle C, Williams A, Stables G. (2004). Body and Soul. A Dietary Intervention Conducted Through African-American Churches. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 27(2), 97-105.

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Updated: 03/02/2017