A Piaget-Based Nutrition Education Intervention in Preschool Children

NCT07700173 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: PAU-BESEG-2026-01
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 238
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

This study examined whether a nutrition education program based on Piaget's theory of cognitive development could improve preschool children's eating habits and food choices. Children attending preschools connected to the Provincial Directorate of National Education, along with their mothers, took part in the study. Some children received six sessions of nutrition education designed according to how young children think and learn (Piaget's theory), while other children did not receive this education and served as a comparison group. Before and after the program, researchers measured children's food consumption, nutrition-related behaviors, and eating behaviors using questionnaires completed by mothers. After the program ended, researchers also talked with a smaller group of mothers in more detail to better understand their experiences and observations. The results showed that children who received the nutrition education improved their food consumption and nutrition-related behaviors. However, the program did not appear to change children's general eating behaviors, such as picky eating or appetite. Mothers' descriptions of their children's experiences helped explain these findings in more depth. These results suggest that nutrition education based on how young children think and learn can help improve what children eat, but changing broader eating behaviors may require additional strategies that also address psychological, cultural, and social factors.

Conditions

Feeding Behaviors; Nutrition Education; Eating Behaviors; Child Nutrition

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (3)

• Change in Food Consumption

  In the Food Consumption Frequency Questionnaire, there are foods that include 7 food groups (dairy group, meat group, vegetable group, fruit group, grain group, oil/margarine group, and sweet group) aimed at determining the child's food consumption status (Güneş et al., 2016). Food consumption frequency is recorded in nine different categories (\>6/day, 4-5/day, 2-3/day, 1/day, 5-6/week, 2-4/week, 1/week, 1-3/month, 1-none/month). The Food Consumption Frequency Questionnaire specific to Turkish children was developed by Güneş and colleagues in 2016. The form includes not only food items but also commonly used ingredients in Turkish cuisine. During the development phase of the form, a food atlas containing the most frequently consumed foods, beverages, and some Turkish dishes was used.

  Baseline and immediately after completion of the six-week intervention

• Change in Nutrition Behavior Scale (NBS) Score

  In determining eating behaviors, the Nutrition Behavior Scale developed by Edmundson et al. (1996) and adapted for Turkish children by Öztürk and Erdoğan (2010) was used. The scale consists of fourteen different items, each containing two different food items-low-fat, high-fat, salty, and unsalted-depicted in pictures and presented as choices, to determine children's food consumption. Students are asked to indicate which of the two comparable food items in each question item they eat more. The scale items receive a value of -1 for unhealthy food and +1 for healthy food. The total score ranges from -14 to +14. A high total score on the scale indicates a healthy eating habit. The reliability of the scale has been reported as r=0.76 (Öztürk, 2010).

  Baseline and immediately after completion of the six-week intervention

• Change in Children's Eating Behavior Questionnaire (CEBQ) Subscale Scores

  Developed by Wardle et al. in 2001, the CEBQ (Children's Eating Behavior Questionnaire) is a Likert-type questionnaire answered by parents, consisting of 8 subscales, that evaluates children's eating behavior across 35 items on a 5-point scale (1=never, 5=always). In the original study where the scale was developed, an eight-dimensional factor structure emerged during the development of the questionnaire, and it was shown that the total variance explained by these eight subscales ranged between 50% and 80%. The Cronbach's alpha coefficients of the eight sub-dimensions ranged between 0.74 and 0.91. The validity and reliability of the scale in Turkey were conducted by Yılmaz and colleagues (2011). This 35-item questionnaire consists of 8 subscales that evaluate the behaviors of enjoying food, food craving, drinking passion, satiety craving, emotional overeating, emotional undereating, slow eating, and food neophobia. The Cronbach's alpha coefficients obtained from ÇYDA's study were 0.69

  Baseline and immediately after completion of the six-week intervention

Study Arms (2)

Piaget-Based Nutrition Education

EXPERIMENTAL

Children and mothers in this group received six sessions of nutrition education based on Piaget's theory of cognitive development.

Behavioral: Piaget-Based Nutrition Education Program

No Intervention

NO INTERVENTION

Children and mothers in this group did not receive the nutrition education program.

Interventions

Piaget-Based Nutrition Education Program BEHAVIORAL

A nutrition education program consisting of six weekly sessions, each lasting 30 minutes, delivered to preschool children by the researcher. The program was developed based on Piaget's theory of cognitive development and designed to match the cognitive developmental stage of preschool-aged children (approximately 3-6 years). Sessions aimed to improve children's food consumption, nutrition knowledge, and eating behaviors through age-appropriate, interactive educational activities.

Piaget-Based Nutrition Education

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 3 Years - 6 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Child (0-17)

You may qualify if:

• Mothers of children aged 3-6 attending kindergartens affiliated with the Provincial Directorate of National Education
• Mothers whose children do not have any health problems affecting their nutritional status
• Mothers aged 18 and above
• Mothers who are at least literate.

You may not qualify if:

• Children with hearing and speech problems,
• Children who do not understand or speak Turkish,
• Children with any illness or learning difficulties,
• Those who participate for a maximum of 2 weeks during the six-week nutrition training.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Uşak University: lead

Study Sites (1)

Preschools affiliated with the Provincial Directorate of National Education, Uşak

Uşak, 64200, Turkey (Türkiye)

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Feeding Behavior

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Behavior, Animal; Behavior

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NON RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: PREVENTION
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Lecturer Doctor

Model Details: Children were assigned to either an intervention group (received Piaget-based nutrition education) or a control group (no intervention), with both groups assessed at the same time points.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: July 7, 2026
• First Posted: July 13, 2026
• Study Start: September 30, 2022
• Primary Completion: February 20, 2023
• Study Completion: June 30, 2023
• Last Updated: July 15, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-07

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

TU (1)