| | Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education |
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| | Eat more fruits and vegetables and move more with increased daily physical activity. |
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Family Nutrition Program (FNP)
SNAP-Ed (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program)
The Family Nutrition Program (SNAP-Ed) offers free nutrition-education programs to participants eligible for public assistance to develop the knowledge and skills necessary to achieve a healthful diet on a limited budget. Participants are taught in small or large groups or individually. Programs are tailored to be appropriate for the age, culture, reading ability and physical or developmental limitations of a particular audience.
FNP/SNAP-Ed participants learn to use:
- The Dietary Guidelines to improve personal and/or family nutrition
- Shopping and budgeting practices that improve personal and family resources to make food dollars last to provide adequate food
- Recommended meal-management practices
- Recommended kitchen-safety/sanitation practices to have a safer food supply
- Recommended dietary guidelines during pregnancy that result in healthy infants
- Recommended guidelines to perform 30 minutes of moderate exercise most days of the week
- A garden to increase consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables
Family Nutrition Program (SNAP-Ed) Successes
As a result of attending FNP/SNAP-Ed sessions, participants changed their behaviors to:
- Eat a greater variety of foods
- Eat fewer meals away from home
- Eat foods new to them
- Eat more meals with family members
- Practice home gardening to increase fruit and vegetable intake
Parish Extension agents and paraprofessionals in FNP/SNAP-Ed parishes provide outreach to low-income audiences with a variety of nutrition lessons.