Moderating Nutritious Habits in Psychiatric Patients Using Transtheoretical Model of Change and Counseling

Motivational Interviewing provides the opportunity to health professionals to have an effective strategy to increase the level of readiness to change health behaviors. Along with the Transtheoretical Model (Stages of Change Model) compose the theoretical base of intervention in psychiatry settings.

This study was aimed to change nutritious behavior of psychiatric patients using a specific Model of Change and Counseling implementing a health education program.

A quasi-experimental design was adopted on a random sample of 60 psychiatric patients at Military Hospital of Athens. Patients were divided into two groups as follows; (a) Intervention Group (four sessions of counseling and encouraging motivation for modification of their nutritious habits), and (b) Control Group (simple information sessions about the principles of healthy alimentation).

The mean age of Intervention Group (IG) was 43.9 ± 9.5 and Control Group (CG) 46.1 ± 9.1, ranging from 40 to 55 years old. Also, 26.7% of the participants were female, 23.3% were married and, 10% divorced. Our analyses showed that IG patients were significantly loss weight post-intervention compared to CG patients. Specifically, IG patients were significantly moderated the intake of starchy foods in every meal (p < 0.001) and the intake of fruits and vegetables (p < 0.001). Similarly, IG patients were moderated the intake of low fat dairy foods while they changed the full fat dairy foods with low fat (p < 0.001). Also important, IG patients showed significant enhance (80%) regarding drugs compliance, suggesting that 34% of the CG patients often forgot to take their medication. Finally, IG patients reported a positive attitude towards moderating unhealthy nutritious behaviors (p = 0.032).

Our results confirms that health educational and promotional Interventions may change behavior of psychiatric patients and thus may positively influence their nutritious habits.