Nutrition: Gardening Interventions to Increase Vegetable Consumption Among Children

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Findings and Recommendations

The Community Preventive Services Task Force (CPSTF) recommends school-based gardening interventions in combination with nutrition education to increase children’s vegetable consumption.

The full CPSTF Finding and Rationale Statement and supporting documents for Nutrition: Gardening Interventions to Increase Vegetable Consumption Among Children are available in The Community Guide Collection on CDC Stacks.

Intervention

Gardening interventions provide children with hands-on experience planting, growing, and harvesting fruits and vegetables in an effort to increase their willingness to consume fruits and vegetables.

Interventions must include at least one of the following:

  • Outside gardens
  • Microfarms
  • Container gardens
  • Other alternative gardening methods

Interventions may also include nutrition education or a parental component. They may be implemented in early care and education settings, schools, afterschool programs, or communities.

About The Systematic Review

The CPSTF uses recently published systematic reviews to conduct accelerated assessments of interventions that could provide program planners and decision-makers with additional, effective options. The following published review was selected and evaluated by a team of specialists in systematic review methods, and in research, practice, and policy related to obesity, nutrition, and school health:

Savoie-Roskos MR, Wengreen H, Durward C. Increasing fruit and vegetable intake among children and youth through gardening-based interventions: a systematic review. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics 2017;11(2);240-50.

The systematic review included 14 studies that examined gardening interventions conducted with children ages 2 to 18 years (search period January 2005 October 2015).

The CPSTF finding is based on results from the published review, additional information from the subset of studies, and expert input from team members and the CPSTF.

Study Characteristics

  • Interventions were conducted in the United States (10 studies), the United Kingdom (2 studies), Australia (1 study), and Canada (1 study).
  • Interventions were implemented in schools (8 studies), afterschool settings (2 studies), communities (2 studies), early care and education settings (1 study), and multiple settings (1 study).
  • Study participants had the following demographic characteristics:
    • Mean age of 9.0 years (7 studies)
    • 51.5% female (10 studies)
    • Black (median 18.0%, 4 studies), Hispanic (median 44.5%, 6 studies), Asian (median 8.0%, 5 studies), White (median 29.6%, 6 studies), and First Nations (100.0%, 1 study)
  • Intervention characteristics:
    • Interventions included nutrition education in addition to gardening activities (7 studies)
    • Intervention duration ranged from 2.5 to 18 months, with a median of 4 months

Summary of Results

The systematic review included 14 studies.

  • Consumption of vegetables increased (12 studies) while fruit consumption did not change (10 studies).
  • Interventions, including nutrition education in addition to gardening activities, were more effective than gardening activities alone.

Summary of Economic Evidence

A systematic review of economic evidence has not been conducted.

Applicability

While additional research is warranted, the CPSTF finding is likely applicable to interventions in elementary and middle school settings in high income countries.

Evidence Gaps

  • Are interventions effective in early care and education, afterschool, and community settings?
  • Are interventions effective when implemented without nutrition education?
  • Does effectiveness vary by age or school level?
  • Do children participating in gardening programs act as agents of change by engaging parents in discussion about food and nutrition? Do parents incorporate healthier dietary habits or purchasing practices at home?

Implementation Considerations and Resources

  • Incorporating a parental component could increase intervention effectiveness by encouraging changes in the home environment and providing support and resources to families, such as cooking and nutrition workshops.
  • While evidence indicates gardening interventions are effective across age groups, it is important to consider children’s ages when developing and implementing gardening interventions to ensure they are age appropriate.
  • Climate may impact program effectiveness as programs in milder climates have longer growing seasons. Programs in more severe climates may be able to lengthen their programs using other methods such as green houses and hydroponics.
  • Schools or communities with greater resources, including financial resources and physical space for gardening, are better able to implement gardening interventions than those with fewer resources.
  • Garden upkeep and maintenance, especially during summer months and school holidays, maybe be a particular challenge for some programs. Hiring a dedicated garden coordinator or providing stipends to teachers implementing gardening programs can help, though dedicated staff are not a requirement for program success.
  • Previous exposure to gardening may impact program effectiveness, as one study had low retention among students with a prior history of gardening at home.

Crosswalks

Healthy People 2030 icon Healthy People 2030 includes the following objectives related to this CPSTF recommendation.