ONE PATHOptimizando la Educación Nutricional para Padres, Maestros y Niños en Edad Preescolar para un Crecimiento Saludable

The ONE PATH study focuses on testing the effectiveness of responsive feeding and appetite regulation interventions. This study targets three groups: Early Childhood Education providers, preschool children, and parents of these children, aiming to address childhood obesity in rural, under-served areas. The importance of this study lies in its potential to improve feeding practices and children's appetite regulation, which could lead to healthier growth patterns in these communities. During the 9-month school year, the study will identify which intervention components are most effective. These include an online responsive feeding training and coaching for ECE providers, a play-based classroom curriculum for preschool children, and a responsive parenting curriculum for parents. The study's primary outcomes include child appetite regulation, assessed using a caloric compensation score, and feeding practices of both early childhood educators and parents, measured through various questionnaires. The study will also investigate whether certain intervention components are more or less effective in certain subgroups, such as child sex, race/ethnicity, and BMI categories.