Evaluation of the Influence of Intervention Tools Used in Nutrition Education Programs: A Mixed Approach

Background: In a global panorama marked by a progressive rise in obesity, metabolic syndrome, and chronic non-communicable disease prevalence, nutrition education (NE) might play a pivotal role in restoring adoption and strengthening adherence to dietary patterns that protect human health. Therefore, the primary purpose of this work is to review the existing scientific literature studying NE programs aimed at schoolchildren in the decade 2014-2024 and evaluate the effectiveness of intervention tools. Methods: During the first phase of this research, a qualitative analysis was conducted to track similarity in intervention tools and strategies used in nutrition education programs. In the second phase, a quantitative analysis was carried out, extracting common parameters among studies and assessing their potential influence in improving adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MD). Results: A high degree of heterogeneity was observed in educational program designs and intervention tools, which were usually not properly described and justified. All studies that measured adherence to the MD registered an improvement after the intervention, in some cases even higher than 10%. However, this study found no relationship between common parameters (i.e., number of formal tools, number of non-formal tools, lesson duration, and program length) used in NE and the improvement in students' adherence to MD. Conclusions: This research has contributed to outlining a general framework of NE and to promoting a systematic approach in this research field.