Nutrition Education

Nutrition education has most recently been defined by Isobel Contento as the process and strategies by which people learn about the nutritional values of food and behaviors related to food and are helped or persuaded to make choices related to food that support health and well-being. Food education may take place at several levels, including efforts directed at individuals, [Page 766]families, and institutions or organizations. Public health policy may also target nutrition education efforts. Historically, the primary focus of nutrition education has been on individuals and families, as in U.S. Department of Agriculture programs such as Cooperative Extension Service, the Expanded Food and Nutrition Program, which targets low-income families and recipients of food assistance such as food stamps, and the Women, Infants, and Children program. ...