Increased exposure to community-based education and 'below the line' social marketing results in increased fruit and vegetable consumption.

Objective: To determine if localised programmes that are successful in engaging the community can add value to larger fruit and vegetable mass-media campaigns by evaluating the results of the Eat It To Beat It programme.

Design: The Eat It To Beat It programme is a multi-strategy intervention that uses community-based education and ‘below the line’ social marketing to increase fruit and vegetable consumption in parents. This programme was evaluated by a controlled before-and-after study with repeat cross-sectional data collected via computer-assisted telephone interviews with 1403 parents before the intervention (2008) and 1401 following intervention delivery (2011).

Sales of healthy choices at fast food restaurants in Australia.

Objective: Some fast food chains have introduced healthier options, however sales data for these menu items are not publicly available. This study aimed to observe healthy and unhealthy meal purchases in Australian fast food stores.

Methods: An observational study was conducted comparing the purchases of healthy and unhealthy meals at 20 McDonald's stores in a variety of socio-economic areas in New South Wales, Australia.

Fast facts: The availability and accessibility of nutrition information in fast food chains.

Issue Addressed: Nutrition information at the point-of-sale assists consumers to make informed fast food choices. This study provides a baseline measure of the availability and accessibility of nutrition information in fast food outlets in Australia, filling a gap in the literature.

Methods: An in-store observational survey was conducted in 222 outlets of five fast food chains in five states.

The efficacy of a brief, peer-led nutrition education intervention in increasing fruit and vegetable consumption: a wait-list, community-based randomised controlled trial.

Objective: The objective of the present research was to test the efficacy of Fruit & Veg $ense sessions in increasing fruit and vegetable consumption.

Design: A wait-list randomised controlled trial was conducted (n 292). Intervention participants attended a Fruit & Veg $ense session and received newsletters at weeks 2 and 5 after attending the session.

Fries or a fruit bag? Investigating the nutritional composition of fast food children's meals.

The impact of children's fast food meals on their daily nutritional requirements has not been assessed in Australia. Analysis of the nutritional composition of children's meals from six fast food chains was conducted. The energy, saturated fat, sugar and sodium content of all children's meals from the chains were assessed against the fast food industry-defined nutrient criteria for healthy meals and children's recommended daily nutritional requirements, as defined by the Nutrient Reference Values and the Dietary Guidelines for Children and Adolescents in Australia.

Fruit and vegetables should be targeted separately in health promotion programmes: differences in consumption levels, barriers, knowledge and stages of readiness for change.

Objective: The aim of the present study was to investigate whether fruit and vegetables should be treated as separate groups in health promotion programmes by examining consumption levels, barriers, knowledge and the association between stage of change and potential predictors of fruit and vegetable intake.

Design: Computer-assisted telephone interview survey of the target population.

Setting: Hunter and New England regions of New South Wales, Australia.