Effectiveness of a short-term soy nutrition education intervention on nutrition knowledge and self-efficacy scores of rural elderly Zambian women

BACKGROUND: Women are at most risk for chronic diseases which can be prevented by healthy dietary choices. Evidence exists that nutrition education interventions (NEIs) are effective in educating community-dwelling women to modify their behavior for better health outcomes. OBJECTIVES: The objectives of this study were to implement a need-based, tailored NEI and evaluate its effectiveness in improving nutrition and soy knowledge and self-efficacy of participants in the intervention group compared to a control group. METHODS: A quasi-experimental pre-post-study design was used in a convenience sample of 149 women from the copper belt region of Zambia. The health belief model (HBM) informed the NEI, which consisted of six lessons, three cooking demonstrations, and an illustrative recipe book. Nutrition and soy knowledge scores and self-efficacy scores were evaluated using validated and reliable questionnaires. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS software, version 26, and mean change scores in knowledge and self-efficacy were compared between the intervention and control groups. RESULTS: The average improvement in the scores for total nutrition knowledge and all six sub-sections of knowledge was significantly higher in the intervention group compared to the control group. The mean total self-efficacy score for the intervention group improved significantly (p = 5.7767e-20) from a pre-intervention score of 29.9±7.4 to 57.3±7.0 after the implementation of the NEI. No significant improvement (p = 0.904) in the control group was observed. CONCLUSIONS: A short-term, multi-component NEI was effective in improving the nutrition and soy knowledge and soy cooking self-efficacy of the participants in the intervention group.