Behavior Change and Health News


Encourage Healthy Eating Habits With Behavioral Interventions

Rachel Coolman, author of the new Healthy Eating Every Day Online course from Active Living Partners, recently wrote an article for the International Council on Active Aging (ICAA)’s Journal on Active Aging about using behavior change programs to help older adults put the dietary guidelines into practice. She described several strategies that have been proven effective not only with older adults but also with any adult who wants to eat well for health. Health and wellness advocates can take advantage of these behavioral interventions to help people choose healthy, nutrient-dense foods and adopt long-term healthy eating habits.

Assess, Address, Assist

Professionals who work with adults to change their eating habits should concentrate on factors that influence food choices rather than the foods themselves. Evaluate your program to ensure you address each of these key components in bringing about long-term behavior change. Using these suggestions, you can customize your program for your specific group or community.

  • Assess predisposing factors. These are the motivations behind someone’s eating behaviors. You should evaluate a person’s current eating habits, stage of readiness to change the eating habits (is this person ready to include more fruits and vegetables?), the barriers that the person perceives as getting in the way of healthy eating, and the triggers that lead to choosing less healthy foods.
  • Address enablers. Enablers make it possible (or not) for healthy eating behaviors to be realized. Teach basic skills of healthy eating, such as supermarket shopping, reading food labels, and choosing healthy foods away from home. Model skill-building exercises such as problem-solving barriers, planning ahead for high-risk situations (such as holiday parties or vacations), and self-monitoring.
  • Assist with developing positive reinforcers. These factors help a person learn to repeat certain eating behaviors. Encourage people to set healthy eating goals and reward themselves for meeting those goals. Help them learn to look to family, friends, or co-workers for support. Explain how to make healthy eating fun by exploring new foods and recipes.

Programs for Lasting Change

To find other innovative ideas for helping people eat well for health, click here to read Rachel Coolman's article in the Journal on Active Aging. Health and wellness advocates who want to integrate behavior change skills such as those described here into their programs can do so with Active Living Partners courses. Developed by Human Kinetics and the Cooper Institute, Active Living Every Day and Healthy Eating Every Day teach participants the behavior change skills they need in order to include more physical activity and eat balanced diets for a lifetime. Please contact Active Living Partners at 800-747-4457 ext 2522 or visit www.ActiveLiving.info for more details.

Sources

Coolman, Rachel. March-April 2005. Promoting healthy eating: A behavioral approach. Journal on Active Aging, p. 42-45. www.icaa.cc



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