UGA EFNEP Food Talk: Baby and Me - An Adapted Program for Low Income Pregnant Women and Their Families in Georgia

Abstract

The Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) delivers series- and evidence-based nutrition education to populations with limited resources, including pregnant women and teens, across the United States. In Georgia, maternal health remains a challenge, as maternal mortality rates remain among the highest in the country. University of Georgia (UGA) EFNEP currently offers nutrition education programming across the state to adults, including pregnant women, using the UGA EFNEP Food Talk curriculum. However, pregnant women have nutritional needs that are unique from the general adult population. UGA EFNEP aimed to address this gap in nutrition education by adapting the existing adult curriculum, UGA EFNEP Food Talk, to include pregnancy-specific nutrition recommendations. UGA EFNEP Extension Supervising Agents and Program Assistants were involved in the adaptation and implementation of the adapted curriculum, providing ongoing feedback related to program development, training, and implementation. The following dissertation study found that it was feasible to adapt an existing UGA EFNEP curriculum to include pregnancy-specific information and to implement the adapted curriculum, UGA EFNEP Food Talk Baby and Me, into the community; a hybrid training model was effective at preparing UGA EFNEP staff to teach the adapted curriculum; and UGA EFNEP staff were able to provide perspectives and feedback related to program recruitment, delivery, and future adaptations.