common threads: community health through cooking...

COMMON THREADS:COMMUNITY HEALTH THROUGH COOKING

PREPARED FORCommunity Health IPC Innovation & Connection Conference

KIDS IN CRISIS

X3Since 1980,

obesity rates have

tripled among

children 8-12

66%in the district

are eligible for the federal free

or reduced school lunch

program

13%Food

insecurity affects

approx. 13% of children in Miami-Dade

County

21%rate of adult

obesity in Miami-Dade

County

FAMILY MEALS IN DECLINE

Families who eat together, stay together; kids less likely

to have eating disorders, use

drugs/alcohol.

COMMON THREADS MISSIONFounded in 2003 in Chicago, Common Threads was created to bring health and wellness to children, families and communities through cooking and nutrition education.

By integrating preventative health programs into school districts and community organizations, Common Threads not only helps combat the rising number of diet-related diseases, but also cultivates a culture that embraces a healthier lifestyle and celebrates diversity through food.

MIAMI IMPACT SY 16-17

15,715participants

60+school and

community partners

87,800meals and snacks

cooking and enjoyed

6Business

Office Staff

7Fundraising

Staff

2Evaluation

Staff

17Program

Staff

ChicagoPittsburgh

New York

Washington DC

Jacksonville

Miami

New Orleans

Austin

Los Angeles

MIAMI PARTNERS

PROGRAMMING IN SOUTH FLORIDACommon Threads provides our nutrition education programs in a variety of settings:

● In-classroom, after school and teacher training programs in M-DCPS and BCS

● Hands-on programs after school and during the Summer in Miami-Dade Parks, Miami Beach Parks, North Miami Parks, and various Summer camps

● Family workshops in libraries and in partnership with museums● Healthy Store Tours and other programs in partnership with

transitional housing facilities● Innovative programs and pilot programs in medical partnerships

CORE PROGRAMS

Nutrition and Healthy Eating Culinary Skills

Interpersonal Skills and

Teamwork

Professional Development

In-School Community Orgs

Healthcare Settings

Social Services

Small Bites & Garden Bites

Cooking Skills (Basic/Advanced) Parent Workshops Family Cooking

Class

Teacher Cooking Class Grocery Store Tours Health Teacher

Training

Cultural Education

Core Content Alignment

Digital Learning

After-School & Summer

Direct Service Train the Trainer Co-Development of ProgramsTrain the Facilitator

Pilot Programs

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Common Threads programs cover a variety of focus areas that can be implemented is a range of contexts and partnership models.

Fee-Based Joint GrantCost-Sharing

Fund

ing

Mod

el Granted by Common Threads

● Eight core 1-hour classroom-based lessons (up to 26)

● PK-8th grade level specific lesson plans

● Out-of-school time versions available

● Knife-free cooking to make healthy snacks

ADAPTATIONS:● Lotus House Mommy and Me

● Florida Impact Breakspot Summer Sites

● Pinecrest Library nutrition workshops

SMALL BITES: NUTRITION EDUCATION

● Ten 2-hour cooking-based lessons, up to 20 students in 3rd-8th grade

● Chef Instructor provided by Common Threads

● Basic level and Advanced level

● Opportunity for peer to peer teamwork and learning and youth mentorship with adult volunteers

ADAPTATIONS:

● City of Hialeah Summer programming

● Health Connect partnership● Carrfour/Verde Farms- trained Nursing Students

COOKING SKILLS AND WORLD CUISINE

● Trained Common Threads Chef Instructor provided

● Options:

○ Two-Hour Family Cooking Classes (2-6 class series)

○ Two-Hour Chef Guided Grocery Store Tours

○ 30-60 minute Interactive Parent Workshops

ADAPTATIONS:

● Baptist Health of South Florida

● WIC

● Carrfour Supportive Housing

ADULT AND FAMILY PROGRAMS

PROGRAM EVALUATIONCooking Skills and World Cuisine has been demonstrated to increase student*● Nutrition knowledge● Self confidence in cooking skills● Frequency of helping to cook at home● Communication about healthy eating to the family● Trial of new fruits and vegetables● Vegetable and fruit consumption

Parents agree that effects are lasting and students● Continue to talk about healthy eating and cooking● Have the knowledge and skills to make healthy meals● Help to cook at home

For at least six months after the end of the program *All results are statistically significant.(Jarpe-Ratner et al. J Soc Nutr Educ Behav 48:697-705, 2016)

HEALTHCARE PARTNERSHIPS

CULINARY MEDICINECooking Up Health Program (10-12 lessons): Designed to teach students in medicine and allied health sciences about nutrition and healthy cooking through culinary medicine and community health.

Participation in the course significantly increased medical students:

● Nutrition knowledge● Self-confidence in eating recommended amounts of fruits and vegetables

and cooking skills● Understanding of importance of nutrition counseling in patient care● Self-confidence in nutrition and obesity counseling

SCHOOL BASED HEALTH REFERRALSNurse referral program: Currently working with 2 schools in M-DCPS. School nurses refer students identified as overweight or obese to the Common Threads after school cooking class.

Project Goals (in-progress):

● Establish a healthy relationship with food● Mentoring by chef-instructor, experiential learning, teamwork

Endpoints to be monitored:

● Bi-annual height, weight, and blood pressure● Comparison to students referred to standard of care

COOKING IN PRIMARY CARERecipes for Health Program (8 lessons): Designed for patients with type 2 diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia. Each class includes dinner preparation and discussion on the fundamentals of nutrition and disease management through diet.

Participant outcomes include:

● Cohort 1: Feasibility study (completed): high attendance and satisfaction

● Cohort 2: Pilot study (completed): Evaluation of changes in nutrition knowledge, attitudes, behaviors, and self-confidence in ability to manage disease

● Cohort 3: Underway Evaluation measures are same as Pilot study.

FOOD PHILOSOPHYCommon Threads takes pride in its curriculum the use of fresh, unprocessed ingredients. We keep our food philosophy in mind for each of our classes and recipes.

● Use whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables, lean meats (organic whenever possible), hormone-free dairy, low-sodium versions of foods like canned beans and vegetable broths or bouillon, and less-processed fats & oils like cold-pressed olive oil

● We minimize use of refined sugar, butter and cream● We never use products that contain high- fructose corn syrup or hydrogenated

oil● We choose healthy pre-class snacks (veggies, fruit, grains, etc.)

Recipe Demo

https://www.commonbytes.org/#/recipes/98

THANK YOU!FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:

RACHEL BIDERMANSENIOR PROGRAM MANAGER, MIAMIRBIDERMAN@COMMONTHREADS.ORG

WWW.COMMONTHREADS.ORG