A Digital Intervention to Promote Preschool Nutrition and Activity: The eHEROs Study
Utilizing Digital Health Approaches to Promote Early Childhood Healthy Eating and Activity Behaviors
2 other identifiers
interventional
60
1 country
1
Brief Summary
The purpose of this pilot study is to assess the feasibility and acceptability of the Know-How program, a 10-week digital intervention for families of young children promoting healthy eating and activity behaviors and environments.
Trial Health
Trial Health Score
Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach
participants targeted
Target at P25-P50 for not_applicable
Started Jan 2026
1 active site
Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.
Trial Relationships
Click on a node to explore related trials.
Study Timeline
Key milestones and dates
First Submitted
Initial submission to the registry
October 22, 2025
CompletedFirst Posted
Study publicly available on registry
November 4, 2025
CompletedStudy Start
First participant enrolled
January 5, 2026
CompletedPrimary Completion
Last participant's last visit for primary outcome
March 30, 2027
ExpectedStudy Completion
Last participant's last visit for all outcomes
March 30, 2027
February 12, 2026
February 1, 2026
1.2 years
October 22, 2025
February 10, 2026
Conditions
Keywords
Outcome Measures
Primary Outcomes (6)
Recruitment
Number of completed interest forms resulting in enrollment.
Baseline (week 0)
Retention
Proportion of intervention activities (e.g., app modules and assessments) completed.
10 weeks
Usability
Mean scores using the System Usability Scale (SUS) to estimate ease of use, complexity, confidence in using, and likelihood of use (scale 0-5, with higher scores indicating higher rankings of usability)
Post-Intervention (week10)
Acceptability
Mean ratings of information helpfulness, goal setting, liking of the program, willingness to recommend, and desire for additional information (scale 0-5, with higher scores indicating higher acceptibility)
10 weeks
Digital Engagement
Percentage of participants engaging with the app (i.e., engagement by topic, features, and temporal patterns), and by dosage (i.e., completion rates of modules and within-app activities).
Post-Intervention (week10)
Intention to sustain
Qualitatively capture, via individual interviews, intervention strategies relating to target behaviors which were implemented or adopted.
Post-intervention (week 10)
Secondary Outcomes (5)
Mindful Parenting
Baseline (week 0) and Post-Intevention (week 10)
Parent-Child Feeding Practices
Baseline (week 0) and Post-Intervention (week 10)
Physical Activity Parenting Practices
Baseline (week 0) and Post-Intervention (week 10)
Perceived Parenting Self-Efficacy
Baseline (week 0) and Post-Intervention (week 10)
Behavioral capability skills
10 weeks
Other Outcomes (6)
Child Meal Quality (exploratory)
Baseline (week 0) and Post-Intervention (week 10)
Child Meal Quantity (exploratory)
Baseline (week 0) and Post-Intervention (week 10)
Child's Dietary Intake (exploratory)
Baseline (week 0) and Post-Intervention (week 10)
- +3 more other outcomes
Study Arms (2)
KnowHow Program
EXPERIMENTALFamilies will participate in the 10-week KnowHow program and will receive/participate in 1) a custom mobile application (app), 2) virtual group discussions, and 3) child-centered support materials
Wait List
NO INTERVENTIONFamilies will not receive any intervention during the 10-week study. Families will receive access to the KnowHow app only for 10 weeks at the conclusion of the study.
Interventions
The KnowHow intervention is a 10-week program that provides parent education on the topics of mindful parenting, healthy eating, and physical literacy. The intervention consists of three components: 1) a custom mobile application (app), 2) virtual group discussions, and 3) child-centered support materials mailed to participating families. (1) The KnowHow app will provide parent education using a variety of modalities The 'know' will provide parents with the core information on mindful parenting, healthy eating, and physical literacy, and the 'how' will give strategies to incorporate the information into daily routines and activities. To facilitate the transition from the 'know' to 'how', the app will have a 'Kid Zone' with content to engage in activities with the preschooler. KnowHow app content will be divided into five modules that include A) lessons (text, audio, video), B) activities, and C) assessments. (2) During the 10-week intervention, participants will also meet via Zoom for
Eligibility Criteria
You may qualify if:
- Participants must have a preschool-aged child (3-5 years) with no disabilities or conditions that impact typical eating and activity behaviors.
- Adult participants must have access to a smartphone, reliable internet at home, and can make video calls.
You may not qualify if:
- Adults who do not have a child aged 3-5 or child has a disability/condition that impact typical eating and activity behaviors.
- Technology access is limited.
- Adults who read, write or speak a language other than English.
Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.
Sponsors & Collaborators
- Cornell Universitylead
- United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)collaborator
- University of Colorado, Denvercollaborator
Study Sites (1)
Cornell University
Ithaca, New York, 14853-0001, United States
Related Publications (1)
Bellows LL, Oke S, Reyes LI, Carmona BA, Johnson SL. Development of a Digital Parent Intervention to Promote Healthy Eating and Activity in Preschoolers: The eHEROs Study. J Nutr Educ Behav. 2025 May;57(5):450-459. doi: 10.1016/j.jneb.2025.01.008. Epub 2025 Feb 7.
PMID: 39918513BACKGROUND
Related Links
MeSH Terms
Conditions
Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)
Study Officials
- PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
Laura L Bellows, PhD
Cornell University
Central Study Contacts
Study Design
- Study Type
- interventional
- Phase
- not applicable
- Allocation
- RANDOMIZED
- Masking
- NONE
- Purpose
- PREVENTION
- Intervention Model
- PARALLEL
- Sponsor Type
- OTHER
- Responsible Party
- SPONSOR
Study Record Dates
First Submitted
October 22, 2025
First Posted
November 4, 2025
Study Start
January 5, 2026
Primary Completion (Estimated)
March 30, 2027
Study Completion (Estimated)
March 30, 2027
Last Updated
February 12, 2026
Record last verified: 2026-02
Data Sharing
- IPD Sharing
- Will share
- Shared Documents
- STUDY PROTOCOL, SAP, ICF
- Time Frame
- After publication
- Access Criteria
- After the publication of outcome data, data will be made available to individuals who have IRB approval.
Any unique resources will be made available immediately after publication. Procedures to protect the privacy of health data of individuals will be implemented to ensure HIPPA privacy standards are met. After the publication of outcome data, it will be made available to individuals who have IRB approval. The final dataset will be de-identified prior to sharing. We will insure that data and associated documentation is available to users only under a data sharing agreement that states a commitment to: 1) using the data only for research purposes, 2) securing the data using appropriate technology protection; and 3) destroying the data after analyses are completed.