Materials Supporting Education and Nutrition for Adults with Intellectual or Developmental Disabilities

Materials Supporting Education and Nutrition for Adults with
Intellectual or Developmental Disabilities (MENU-AIDDs)

A Health Promotion Program for Review

(Poster presentation at American Public Health Association 135th Annual Meeting, Washington, DC, November 4-7, 2007)

Kathleen Humphries PhD, Meg A. Traci PhD, Tom Seekins PhD, Alison C. Pepper MA.
The Rural Institute on Disabilities, University of Montana
Support from Centers for Disease Control, cooperative agreement U59CCU824602

Introduction

Man shops for fresh colorful produce MENU-AIDDs is a nutritional health promotion program that provides nutrition supports to adults with intellectual or developmental disabilities (IDD) living in group homes in the community and to the staff who provide direct support to them.

Background

Research shows:

Menus and foods available in IDD group homes are nutritionally inadequate
Staff are under-qualified to deliver healthful meals
Nutrition-related secondary conditions are limiting for adults with IDD

Methods

Participants: 4 IDD Group homes in Montana serving 32 adult consumers with IDD

Procedure:

1. Train staff to use MENU-AIDDs
2. Baseline & 8-weeks evaluations on:

Menu changes
Residents’ weight changes (BMI)

Servings of food groups on written menus (occasions/week) Description of table

Food Group Variables	Pre	Post	Difference	% Change	Significance
Whole grains	.9	1.7	+.8	+88%	p<.10
Vegetables	10.3	12.3	+2.0	+19%	p<.05
Green, yellow, orange veggies	3.1	7.4	+4.3	+139%	p<.10
Protein - lowfat	2.6	4.3	+1.7	+65%	p<.10
"Junk food"	5.3	3.3	-2.0	-38%	p<.05
Portions	1.3	4.4	+3.1	+239%	p<.10

On the same menu plan, residents with lower BMI gained weight; residents with higher BMI lost weight. Description of table.

Weight Gain Group (N = 9)
Pounds gained	+4.2 lbs.	(+2 lbs - +10 lbs.)
BMI at baseline	22.1	(17.2 - 28.7)
BMI post-intervention	22.7	(17.9 - 28.7)
Weight Loss Group (N = 12)
Pounds lost	-4.4 lbs.	(-12 lbs. - -2 lbs.)
BMI at baseline	28.9	(22.8 - 35.5)
BMI post-intervention	28.2	(22.1 - 34.7)
Variance across BMI categories - baseline	18.1	(17.4 - 35.5)
Variance across BMI categories - post intervention	16.3	(18.4 - 34.7)

For more information on the MENU-AIDDS program, contact:

Kathleen Humphries, PhD
Montana Disability and Health Program
The University of Montana Rural Institute
52 Corbin Hall
Missoula, Montana 59812-7056
888-268-2743 or 406-243-2525
rural@ruralinstitute.umt.edu

Living Well under the Big Sky is a partnership between the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services and The University of Montana Rural Institute. We are funded by the Disability and Health Team, National Center on Birth Defects, Developmental Disabilities, and Disability and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Grant #U59/CCU821224-01.

For more information, contact:

Meg Traci, Ph.D., Project Director
Research and Training Center on Disability in Rural Communities
The University of Montana Rural Institute: Center for Excellence in
Disability Education, Research and Services
52 Corbin Hall, Missoula, MT 59812-7056
406-243-4956
matraci@ruralinstitute.umt.edu