Women with low income and who are at risk for heart disease have few opportunities to reduce their risk through dietary counseling. Little by Little, a computer program on compact disk (CD-ROM), is a low-cost, easy-to-use nutritional improvement program that helps women assess their diet, learn about nutrition, get personal recommendations, and set goals for improving their dietary habits. In initial tests among 300 participants, 90 percent said they learned something new and put their dietary goals into practice—even though they spent about only 12 minutes using the program. Researchers from Berkeley and West Virginia are studying the program’s effectiveness with over 400 middle-aged women who have low income and high risk for heart disease. The studies will determine whether using the CD-ROM one time increases the amount of fruits and vegetables participants eat, and whether CD-ROM use followed by a telephone call is more effective than CD-ROM use only. Other indicators of the program’s effectiveness include participants’ dietary habits and knowledge, attitude, and motivation toward healthy eating.

Researchers at North Carolina are examining whether the New Leaf—Choices for Healthy Living program is effective and feasible for reducing the risk of heart disease among women aged 40-64 older who are under insured or uninsured. New Leaf is a 6-month program that includes individual nutritional counseling, telephone follow-up, and resource referrals. Evaluation at 6 and 12 months will include measures of the women’s physical activity, diet, cholesterol, blood pressure, attitude, knowledge, and motivation. The cost-effectiveness of the program will be compared with that of other risk reduction programs.

Source: CDC: Reducing the Risks of Heart Disease for People with Low-Income