Testing of a Culinary Medicine Intervention for Racially/Ethnically Diverse Adults With Type 2 Diabetes.

Abstract

Assess if a virtual culinary medicine program improves healthy eating, glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), and associated variables among adults with type 2 diabetes. Mixed-methods, intervention-only pilot study. Classes via video conferencing from the teaching kitchen, with participants cooking from their homes. One hundred and four patients from a Texas primary care system. Five-session program (Spanish and English) led by a dietitian. HbA1c. Secondary outcomes included MyPlate knowledge, self-efficacy, healthy eating and cooking behaviors, diabetes self-management, perceived health, and blood pressure. Multilevel mixed-effects regression to analyze changes at pretreatment, posttreatment, and 6-month follow-up. Framework analysis to analyze postintervention interviews. Participants with complete posttest data (n = 61) demonstrated statistically significant (P <0.05) improvements in MyPlate knowledge, cooking self-efficacy, servings of fruits and vegetables, frequency of healthy food intake, shopping, cooking and eating behaviors, diabetes self-management, and perceived health, compared with pretest. HbA1c levels showed statistically significant reductions from pretest to posttest (P = 0.02) and at 6-month follow-up (P <0.001). Participants reported high satisfaction and sustained new habits. We saw improvements in healthy eating and cooking behaviors and HbA1c. While further rigorous testing is needed, this program could be incorporated into clinical practices as a brief intervention for patients with type 2 diabetes.