Adolescents' use of tobacco, health locus of control, and self-monitoring.

This study examined the association of the traits, health locus of control, and self-monitoring with adolescents' tobacco uptake. Participants were 112 rural adolescents (12 to 19 years old, M = 15.3). Of that sample, 33% used tobacco. Tobacco users were found to score lower on the dimension of Internality and higher on the dimension of Chance, as compared with nonusers of tobacco, indicating a more external Health Locus of Control. In addition, tobacco users were lower self-monitors than were nonusers. These results suggest that adolescents who use tobacco feel less in control of their lives in relation to nonusers, believe that chance plays a larger role in their health, and believe they may be unable to monitor and adapt their communication to achieve positive outcomes.

A comparison of different approaches to promote community-wide dietary change.

BACKGROUND: Because public health education funds are limited, it is important to determine which methods are most effective for promoting healthy lifestyles to communities. We conducted interventions in two communities to further examine the effectiveness of various educational approaches for communicating the "1% Or Less" message to switch from high-fat (whole or 2%) to low-fat (1% or fat-free) milk. METHODS: One intervention used public relations and community-based educational activities in supermarkets, schools, worksites, and other community settings. The other used paid advertising in the absence of other programming. We used telephone surveys and supermarket milk sales data, collected before and after each campaign and in a comparison community, to determine changes in milk-usage patterns. RESULTS: After the campaign of community-based educational programs and public relations activities, the proportion of high-fat milk drinkers who reported drinking low-fat milk was 19.6% compared with 6.8% for the comparison city (p<0.0001). After the advertising-only campaign, 12.8% of high-fat milk drinkers reported drinking low-fat milk (p<0.01). Although supermarkets experienced increases in low-fat milk sales after both campaigns, the results were not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: The results show how well-designed public relations activities can attract news coverage and provide further evidence that such coverage can be an important component of health-promotion campaigns. Although the use of paid advertising in the absence of other media or programming appeared to change milk-drinking habits, the results were not sustained after the ads stopped airing.

Using mass media to promote healthy eating: A community-based demonstration project.

BACKGROUND: Many question whether mass media, in the absence of other programming, can produce significant and sustained behavior change. METHODS: The 1% Or Less campaign in Wheeling, West Virginia (population 35,000), used paid advertising and public relations to encourage members of one community to switch from whole or 2% milk (high-fat milk) to 1% or fat-free milk (low-fat milk). The study used a quasi-experimental research design with one intervention city and one comparison city. The effectiveness of the campaign was evaluated by collecting milk sales data from supermarkets and conducting pre- and post-intervention telephone surveys in intervention and comparison cities. RESULTS: In the intervention city, low-fat milk sales increased from 29% of overall milk sales before the campaign to 46% of sales in the month following the campaign. The increase was maintained at the 6-month follow up. According to the telephone surveys, 34.1% of high-fat-milk drinkers reported switching to low-fat milk in the intervention community compared with 3.6% in the comparison community (z = 13.1, P < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: A media-only approach was sufficient to encourage a significant proportion of the people in one community to alter the dietary habit targeted by the intervention.

1% or less: a community-based nutrition campaign.

OBJECTIVE: The authors evaluated the effectiveness of a community education campaign to encourage a switch from high-fat (whole and 2%) milk to low-fat (1%, 1/2%, and skim) milk as a way to reduce consumption of saturated fat. METHODS: Milk sales data were collected from supermarkets in the intervention and comparison communities for three one-month time periods: at baseline, immediately following the campaign, and six months after the campaign. In addition, trained volunteers conducted pre- and post-intervention telephone surveys. RESULTS: Overall milk sales increased by 16% in the intervention cities following the campaign and remained high at follow-up. Low-fat milk's market share increased from 18% of overall milk sales at baseline to 41% of overall milk sales in the month following the end of the campaign, an increase in market share that was sustained at the six-month follow-up. In the post-intervention telephone survey, 38.2% of those respondents who reported drinking high-fat milk at baseline reported having switched to low-fat milk. CONCLUSION: A focused message communicated through paid advertising, public relations activities, and community-based education programs increased low-fat and overall milk consumption in one community.