Masters of Science in Foods & Nutrition Successfully Achieved!

Jennifer Broxterman, MSc
Registered Dietitian & Sports Nutritionist
London, ON

I just wanted to share a quick update with my clients, friends, and followers… this past Monday July 30, 2012 marked a very special day in my academic journey.  I successfully earned my Masters of Science in Foods & Nutrition from Brescia University College (via The University of Western Ontario) after defending my thesis on my prediabetes / Type 2 diabetes prevention research!!!  After two long years of hard work to design a nutrition and physical activity education program, deliver client education sessions, collect data, analyze the data, and spend endless hours writing to produce my 179 page thesis (that’s 45,510 words, but who’s counting?), I am very happy to say that it was all worth it!  An abstract I submitted to the Canadian Diabetes Association Professional Conference this October 2012 has been accepted, and I am honoured to have the opportunity to present my work in an oral presentation at the conference this fall.

Jennifer Broxterman, enjoying a drink from the “Chalice of Knowledge” at the Grad Club at The University of Western Ontario.

Below is an abstract I wrote that provides a brief summary of my work and research findings:

ABSTRACT: Does a Group Lifestyle Behaviour Change Program (PREPARE) have an Impact on the Nutritional and Health Characteristics in Adults with Prediabetes?

Objective: Lifestyle interventions that target diet and physical activity have been shown to reduce the development of Type 2 diabetes (T2DM) in individuals at risk; however, accessible and effective community-based prevention programs remain lacking.  The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of PREPARE, a group lifestyle behaviour change program in adults with prediabetes.

Methods: Adults diagnosed with prediabetes could self-select PREPARE (n=48, intervention arm), consisting of six monthly group nutrition and physical activity education sessions, or, a one-time group education session (n=15, controls), both aimed to prevent Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM).  Primary outcome measures included dietary, anthropometric, and hemodynamic parameters associated with T2DM.  Program impact was evaluated with a one-way ANOVA, while paired t-tests assessed within-group pre-/post- changes.

Results: The PREPARE program did not have a significant impact on the dietary factors examined; however, intervention participants did increase their intake of vegetables and fruit (V&F) by +0.3 servings/day, achieving a mean daily intake of 6.3 V&F servings/day post-program.  Additionally, participants that attended ≥50% of the education sessions (n=25) significantly reduced their sodium (p<0.004), saturated fat (p=0.01), weight (p=0.01), waist circumference (p=0.01), and diastolic (p=0.03) and systolic (p=0.048) blood pressure from baseline.

Conclusions: These preliminary results show potential for modifying key lifestyle behaviours known to contribute to T2DM development.