Premium
Exploring the Potential for Technology‐Based Nutrition Education for Alaska Native WIC Recipients in Rural Southwest Alaska
Author(s) -
Power Julianne Mary,
Bersamin Andrea
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.30.1_supplement.lb430
Subject(s) - phone , nutrition education , the internet , nutrition information , census , geography , medicine , rural area , gerontology , environmental health , population , world wide web , philosophy , linguistics , chemistry , food science , pathology , computer science
Alaska Native People are disproportionately impacted by nutrition‐related diseases, and those living in remote communities (e.g. off the road system) are particularly hard to reach with traditional nutrition education. Media technologies, including the Internet and cell phones, provide novel ways to reach rural populations; however, these technologies have only been recently introduced to remote Alaska Native communities. The purpose of this study was to quantify media technology use among Alaska Native WIC recipients in Southwest Alaska to understand the feasibility of technology‐based nutrition education. Surveys were mailed to 967 WIC authorized representatives in the Bethel Census Area using the Tailored Design Method. The response rate was 37.4% (N=362). Most participants were Alaska Native (99.1%) women (97.5%) between 18–29 years old (56.6%) with a high school education (61%). Use of media technology was extremely common; 80.2% of respondents use the internet, 78.1% of respondents have a smart phone, and 89.5% of respondents use Facebook. A multiple regression analysis found older respondents had lower media technology use scores (β = −.25, t(323) = −4.74, p < .05), while more educated respondents had higher media technology use scores (β = .18, t(323) = 3.40, p < .05). Additionally, online health information seeking was prevalent; 48.2% of respondents look for nutrition information online every few months or more frequently, and 73.7% of respondents are somewhat or very likely to search for answers to nutrition‐related questions online. Potential barriers to receiving nutrition information on a phone or computer include slow internet (51.0%), no computer access (42.1%), and the high cost of internet (35.1%). These data demonstrate that the prevalence of media technology use is similar to national estimates and that technology is a viable way for WIC and other Federal Food Assistance Programs to deliver nutrition education to Alaska Native People living in remote communities.