Brief Summary of Minutes of Annual Meeting

NE 1039 Annual Meeting Minutes Technical Committee Workshop June 7-8, 2010 Whispering Pines Conference Center, W. Alton Jones Campus, University of Rhode Island Presiding: Mark Kantor, Chair Mark welcomed the group. Each participant introduced him/herself. We welcomed the new attendees, Sarah Francis from Iowa State University and Furong Xu from the University of Rhode Island. Dr. Gloria Wyche-Moore welcomed us to the meeting as our Administrative Advisor. She updated us on her busy year as Dean of Community Outreach, AES and Extension at UDC. Dr. Susan Welsh, our USDA/NIFA Representative, also welcomed us and provided an update of activities and changes at the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA). Here are brief highlights: - On October 1 CSREES became NIFA. Mission areas include research, education and economics (NIFA, ERS, ARS, National Agricultural Statistics). - New leadership includes Roger Beachy, Director of NIFA and Roger Shaw, MD, Chief Scientist. - Susan recommended a new book  A New Biology for the 21st Century. - NIFA grant funding has not increased in years so the goal now is to show impact. Susan described the grants available in nutrition. - The Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee report will be out at the end of June. Once published in the Federal Register, the comment period will begin. We discussed the need for our multistate project group to recruit more members. We are the only USDA multistate project addressing older adults, especially biomarker methodology. We also need to discuss the amount of time needed for our annual meeting. Station Reports: The following stations reported: Rhode Island. Matthew Delmonico, Ingrid Holmes, plus 3 graduate students: Kate Cottell, Chad Straight, and Leah Dorfman New Hampshire. Catherine Violette Maryland. Mark Kantor Massachusetts. Nancy Cohen Iowa. Sarah Francis. Intergenerational nutrition and physical activity study District of Columbia. Prema Ganganna and William Rice New York. Judy Gilbride June 8, 2011 Recruiting New Members: The group discussed the need to expand our membership and recruit new members to the NE 1039 project. Here are some of the suggestions generated: - Julie Jones (MN), whole grain expert, retired - Penny Ralston, FL - Members of SNEs Healthy Aging Division, eg. Karla Shelnutt, Linda Bobroff, Jackie McClellan) - The NE 1039 proposal is available on the NIMMS site. - Mark will send us a pdf of the proposal to send to interested people - Susan has a list of Extension people interested in nutrition and physical activity - Sarah will talk with her colleague in Kinesiology We agreed that it is important to target people by expertise so we don't get too large. NE 1039 Leadership: Mark Kantor will continue as Chair of the NE 1039 project group. The Vice Chair position remains vacant. Prema is now Secretary and Matt is Member-at-Large. SNE Presentation and Summary of NE 1023: Mark Kantor and Catherine Violette are presenting a summary of our work on the NE 1023 project in a symposium sponsored by the Healthy Aging Division at SNEs annual meeting in Reno during July. The group brainstormed ideas and suggestions for the presentation: -Include a description of how regional projects work -Provide a brief history or our group -List of NE 1023 names -Include the objectives and outcomes on NE 1023 -Mark will summarize the work on biomarkers and Catherine will summarize the educational interventions -Provide a handout of our publications and use as a recruiting tool -Describe the advantages and disadvantages of working in multistate groups -Describe the future direction of NE 1039 2011 Annual Meeting: The dates for the 2011 annual meeting were set as June 6-7, 2011. Location was discussed and decided as Portland, ME. We decided to convene at noon on Monday and adjourn at 3 pm on Tuesday. The 2010 meeting adjourned at 11:50 am on June 8, 2010.

Catherine Violette, University of New Hampshire I presented selected results of Objective 2, Experiment 2 (NE 1023) on July 12, 2009 during the annual meeting of the Society for Nutrition Education in New Orleans, LA. Approximately 25 conference attendees participated in the session. While attending the annual SNE meeting I talked with a member of the Healthy Aging Division and explored with her how our NE 1023 research group could best disseminate a summary of our 5 year project to their membership. The leadership of the Healthy Aging Division asked us to prepare a proposal for a symposium sponsored by the Healthy Aging Division to be presented during the 2010 SNE annual meeting in Reno NV. Mark Kantor prepared the proposal which was accepted by SNE. Mark Kantor and Catherine Violette will represent the NE 1023 project members and present the symposium entitled Whole Grains, Leafy Greens, Biomarkers, and Eating Behavior: A Multistate Collaboration on Healthy Aging Success Story on Monday, July 26, 2010. The draft whole grain curriculum for older adults which is based on the results of the NE 1023 project was disseminated to three UNH Cooperative Extension Educators and collaborators for review. Their input and suggestions were reviewed and the curriculum revised. One session of the three-session program was formatted as a one-session program to be piloted by NH Family and Consumer Resources Educators with groups of older adults in New Hampshire. Nine Extension Educators were trained on the curriculum and provided an update on whole grain foods during a two-hour inservice delivered via GoToMeeting® technology. A central database is being developed to summarize evaluation results for the one-session program. Anecdotal feedback indicates that the Extension Educators enjoy implementing the program and feedback from participants is very positive. A three panel display detailing the 3-step whole grain identification process used in the curriculum was developed. A copy of the display was distributed to all 10 NH counties. The displays have been used during health fairs and displayed in Cooperative Extension offices. The three-session education program will be completed for pilot testing during the fall of 2010. The testing protocol will be finalized. Extension Educators will be contacted and trained to deliver the program in 2011. Sarah L. Francis, Iowa State Univ OUTPUTS: We (an interdisciplinary team: exercise physiologist, psychologist, dietitian, youth development specialist) applied for and received NIFA funding for an intergenerational physical activity program designed to be implemented in rural residing congregate mealsites. The overall objective is to pilot test a community-based, intergenerational exergaming program for older and young adults (Living well through Intergenerational Fitness and Exercise [LIFE] Program). The central hypothesis for the proposed research is that the LIFE Program will increase functional fitness, subjective well-being and physical activity readiness to change among older adults while improving aging perceptions among young adults. Since receiving the grant (September 2010) the main focus has been program planning and material development. During this time, we applied for and received Institutional Review Board permission; developed a "phase-in" site schedule; met with previously identified collaborators; drafted accompanying materials (recruitment information, questionnaires, program logo, wellness newsletters); developed the Trainer workshop curriculum handouts, PowerPoint slides, accompanying user manual); purchased materials; and conducted site visits. Specific accomplishments achieved during this period: 1. Scheduled seven meal sites to host program (five Spring 2011, two Summer 2011); 2. worked with graphic designer to create a LIFE program logo for use on all accompanying material; 3. Began intensive trainer recruitment at Iowa State University (16 confirmed trainers); 4. Created eight wellness newsletters. We pilot-tested these with a small sample of 28 older adults to gather input regarding content, design, name, and relevance to their lives. This input was included during the revision process; 5. Developed a training manual/user guide draft (10 chapters, plus appendices). This will be used during the training workshops. Final edits will be done during Fall 2011 prior to making the manual/user guide available on CDs; 6. designed training workshop PowerPoint presentations (5 total) and agenda; 7. Ordered required supplies and materials (Wii kits, training workshop supplies, etc.) through our university purchasing department. PARTICIPANTS: INDIVIDUALS: Sarah L. Francis, Ph.D., MHS, RD (PI), Assistant Professor/State Nutrition Extension Specialist, Dept. of Food Science and Human Nutrition; Warren D. Franke, Ph.D., FACSM (Co-investigator), Professor/Director, The Exercise Clinic at Dept. of Kinesiology; Jennifer A. Margrett, Ph.D. (Co-investigator), Assistant Professor, Department of Human Development and Family Studies; Marc Peterson (collaborator), Program Specialist, 4-H Youth Development, Iowa State University Extension, Polk County; Kara Strand, Graduate Student, Dept. of Food Science and Human Nutrition. ORGANIZATIONS: Aging Resources of Central Iowa (congregate mealsites in Story County Iowa). TARGET AUDIENCES: The LIFE program utilizes an intergenerational design towards health promotion of older adults. We are recruiting a convenience and snowball sample of rural older adults age 60+ (n=100) and young adults ages 16-22 years (n=30). Young adults will serve as the on-site program trainers and older adults will be program participants. To ensure success, a key component is the training workshop for the trainers during which training materials will be provided. A one-day trainer workshop for young adult volunteers will be completed prior to the on-site program implementation. The trainer workshop will discuss the various program assessment tools, using Wii as an intervention tool, physical activity safety issues for older adults, working with older adults, and group activities. Accompanying printed materials will be provided. Older adult participants will attend the on-site program twice weekly for eight weeks for a total of 90 minutes of activity (Day 1: 30 minutes Wii, Day 2: 30 minutes Wii and 30 minutes interactive group games). Wii is the primary avenue for physical activity promotion; however, once weekly 30-minute group activity will be incorporated to promote dialogue between participants and trainers. The second part of the intervention for older adults is the newsletter intervention which uses eight bi-monthly wellness newsletters distributed over a four month period following the on-site program. IMPACT: 2010/01 TO 2010/12 The drafts of the newsletters, user manual and training workshop curriculum will be used during the pilot project time period (Jan 2011-Dec 2011). Throughout the study period evaluation data (focus group and survey) will be collected on each of the above items. The feedback will be used to revise the aforementioned products prior to final production. The newsletter will be made available through ISU-Extension in print or pdf; the user manual and workshop curriculum will be available in a CD format. University of Rhode Island, Matt Delmonico, Ingrid Lofgren, Furong Xu: Review of Research Completed During our recent USDA-funded quasi-experimental community outreach study (UR-IDEAL II, fall 2009), 109 overweight and obese older adults aged 60-74 years underwent 8 weeks of dietary education and low to moderate intensity resistant training at four Rhode Island senior centers. Subjects in the DEPT group significantly increased their muscle strength (15%, p < 0.001) and lost weight, decreased percent body fat and body mass index decreased (p <0.05). They also improved their dietary quality as measure by the Dietary Screening Tool (p < 0.01) and decreased their triacylglycerols (p < 0.05). Adherence to the dietary intervention sessions was 85% for the DE group and 98% for the DEPT group. In the DEPT group, compliance was high in regards to the PT, as subjects attended 96% of the PT exercise sessions. This suggests that dietary education with resistance training can be completed in senior centers and can reduce the risk of coronary heart disease and improve physical functioning. In the spring of 2010, we completed a pilot study (UR-IDEAL III), with 11 obese older women (60-79 years of age) who participated in 12 weeks of dietary education and structured Tai Chi sessions. Though not significant, positive changes in waist circumference, body mass, and body mass index were close to significance and there were significant improvements in hamstring and lower back flexibility (p<0.05). Improvements in flexibility can impact physical functioning. Future Grant Proposals Drs. Delmonico and Xu are co-principal investigators and Dr. Lofgren is co-investigator on "Effects of Tai Chi during weight loss in obese older women," a USDA-funded three year study. In phase I, 32 obese women will be recruited to be randomized to diet education only or Tai Chi training with dietary education. Phase two will be a quasi-experimental study in which diet education with Tai Chi is done in four Rhode Island senior centers to test the impact on physical functioning and risk of coronary heart disease. In addition, Drs. Delmonico, Lofgren, and Xu submitted an NIH R15 AREA grant proposal to the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine entitled "Effect of Tai Chi during Weight Loss in Obese Older Women". We originally submitted in February 2010 and the proposal was scored but not funded. We will resubmit in October of 2010. UDC, Prema Ganganna, William Rice: The current UDC NE-1039 project seeks to design and implement intervention strategies that will increase fruit, vegetable, and whole grain consumption in the multicultural elderly population in the District of Columbia. A motivational educational curriculum will be developed that will include recreational games and activities. This curriculum will be tested on a sample or individuals who have been identified as low consumers of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. An ancillary question will be to determine the extent to which elderly citizens provide significant nutritional care to children. A recent city ordinance, The District of Columbia Healthy Schools Act of 2010, requires that District of Columbia Public Schools and the community at large attend to the health needs of children, particularly regarding nutrition. Anecdotal evidence suggests that a significant number of school age children are cared for by elderly relatives. If this is the case, nutritional habits of the elderly will affect children; and interventions with the elderly should address this possibility. Specific objectives of the UDC project are to: " compare knowledge, priorities, and attitudes of high fruit, vegetable, and whole grain consumers with low fruit, vegetable, and whole grain consumers; and assess the effect of these cognitive and affective characteristics on food choices and consumption. " design new, innovative, and fun filled games and activities that provide effective nutrition education. " collect traditional recipes from the elderly, modify the ingredients and cooking methods to improve nutrition density by increasing variety and content of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. " publish a recipe book with original and modified recipes that incorporates memories,stories, and cultural traditions from the elderly, providing a record of their significant life experiences. " determine the extent to which elderly citizens provide nutritional care to children. " network with community leaders and organizations to schedule ongoing nutrition awareness programs and food demonstrations. Methodology The population for this study is the group of citizens of the District of Columbia aged 60 and above. A sample will be selected from the District of Columbia congregate sites. Approximately 150 free-living volunteers, aged 60 and above will be randomly selected from the registered participants at the 59 available congregate sites. The congregate sites provide direct services from the District of Columbia's Office on Aging for through a senior service network. These services include nutritious and tasty meals, social and recreational activities as well as information on staying well. Advice and guidance on dietary intake are provided to individuals for improving their nutritional status. Noon meals are served at all 59 centers in wards 1through 9 in the District of Columbia. Volunteers will be required to sign a consent form and will be oriented about the objectives and purpose of research. A survey instrument that will distinguish between high and low consumers of fruits, vegetables,and whole grains, will be field tested and validated. The survey will require each subject to complete a four day food dairy. Moreover, the survey will identify cognitive and affective determinants of food choices. Data from the diary will assess the number of portions of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains consumed by each subject. A camera will be given to each participant as an incentive to participate in the study and also to take pictures of each meal consumed to provide an accurate data of fruits and vegetables. Participants will be trained in the simple use of cameras and given specific instructions for taking pictures of meals and meal preparation. Using the 4-day dietary data the numbers and portion of fruits and vegetables consumed per person will be calculated and averaged over the four day period. Results of the survey and the four day food diary will be used to partition subjects into 2 group: high consumers and low consumers. Nutrition analysis software and the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) will be used to analyze data from each group. Independent variables including knowledge, attitudes, perceptions, non nutritional life styles, etc. will be identified. Regression and factor analysis will be used to determine which of these independent variables are the strongest predictors of the dependent variable consumption of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. The low consumer group will serve as a treatment group and will receive intervention intended to increase fruit, vegetable and whole grain consumption. Interventions will be non invasive. Intervention strategies will be validated on subsequent samples of low consumers of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. University of Massachusetts, Nancy Cohen Objective 1: To examine novel interventions to increase fruit, vegetable and whole grain intake and physical activity in older adults. Objective 1, Experiment 1 Environmental changes to increase fruits, vegetables, and whole grain intakes and physical activity in older adults. (UMass, lead; RI, MD participating stations) Researchers at UMass Amherst have been working with the Food Sank of Western Massachusetts to develop and implement a survey of residents in a Springfield, MA neighborhood to determine perceptions of local access to quality, affordable fresh fruits and vegetables. Purchase of fruits and vegetables at corner stores (bodegas) and self-reported consumption will also be assessed. Thus far, the survey has been developed and translated into Spanish, IRB approval was obtained from the University of Massachusetts, and data have been collected from approximately 50 residents. Data collection is ongoing. Once complete, data from older and younger adults will be compared with respect to perceived availability of and access to fresh fruits and vegetables locally. UMass researchers have also been preparing to develop a survey to identify perceived and desired environments that would promote fruit, vegetable and whole grain consumption in diverse older adults in collaboration with participating stations and a local western Massachusetts community. The survey will be administered to regional elder service agency staff, nutrition professionals and community members of a city food policy council in western Massachusetts.

Two manuscripts summarizing the results of the Objective 2, Experiment 2 research project were prepared. One manuscript, entitled Package Information Used by Older Adults to Identify Whole Grain Foods, has been submitted to the Journal of Nutrition for the Elderly. The second will soon be completed and submitted to the Journal for Nutrition Education and Behavior. Abstracts Presented 1. Straight C, Dorfman L, Cottell K, Lofgren IE, Delmonico MJ. 2010. Can Isometric Knee Extensor Torque from Hand-held Dynamometry Predict Physical Function in Overweight Older Adults? Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. 42;5. 2. Dorfman LR, Straight CR, Cottell KE, Riebe DA, Lofgren IE, Delmonico M]..2010. Body Composition Indices and their Association with Physical Functioning in Community-Dwelling Older Adults. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. 42;5. 3. Cottell KE, Dorfman LR, Straight CR, Delmonico M], Lofgren IE. 2010. Assessment of Overweight and Obese Older Adults using a Dietary Questionnaire and Biochemical Values. FASEB J. 24:738.1. Papers Submitted or In Progress 1. Cottell KE, Dorfman LR, Straight CR, Delmonico MJ, Lofgren IE. 2010. The Effects of Diet Education Plus Light Resistance Training on Coronary Heart Disease Risk Factors in Community-Dwelling Older Adults. Journal of Nutrition, Health, and Aging. Accepted. 2. Straight C, Dorfman L, Cottell K, Krol J, Lofgren IE, Delmonico MJ. Effects of Resistance Training and Dietary Changes on Physical Function and Body Composition in Overweight and Obese Older Adults. Journal of Physical Activity and Health, In Review, 2011. 3. KroIJ, PayneJ, Cottell K, Dorfman L, Straight C, Xu F, Lofgren IE, Delmonico MJ. Effects of Tai Chi and Diet on Physical Function in Obese Older Women. Being prepared for submission to the European Journal of Applied Physiology, 201l. 4. Straight C, Lofgren IE, Delmonico MJ. Resistance Training in Older Adults: Are Community"Based Interventions Effective for Improving Health Outcomes? Being prepared for submission to the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine, 2011.