Latinos Using Cardio Health Actions to Reduce Risk (LUCHAR) Project: Findings from a community-based kiosk intervention to improve nutrition, physical activity, and smoking behavior

Background: Interventions are needed to promote cardiovascular disease(CVD) prevention among Latinos. Prevention is feasible but challenging, particularly for low-income and recent immigrants with limited access to healthcare and prevention programs. Progress has been made to facilitate healthy behaviors through computerized programs, but there are no computerized prevention programs for Latinos. Methods: We conducted a 2-month community-based pilot study with 200 low-income Latinos in five community settings in Denver, CO. We evaluated the efficacy of a culturally sensitive, bilingual, interactive, computerized kiosk intervention to assess CVD risk, select behavioral goals for CVD prevention and improve healthy behaviors. Assessments included self-reported nutrition, physical activity and smoking behaviors, chronic conditions, social support, self-efficacy, and demographic data. Outcomes: Retention rate was 81%. Sixty three percent selected a nutrition goal, followed by physical activity (31%) and smoking cessation (7%). Daily consumption of >5 servings of fruits and vegetables significantly increased from baseline (14%) to follow-up (25%) (p=.03); and, mean overall nutrition scores significantly decreased (higher scores= poorer nutrition) from baseline (5.1) to follow-up (4.6) (p= 0.00). A higher proportion of Latinos met physical activity guidelines at follow-up (49%) vs. baseline (34%) (p=.04). There was no significant change in the number of current smokers between baseline and follow-up (p=0.9). Conclusions: It is practical and feasible to engage Latinos in a community-based, computerized CVD prevention program. Tailored kiosk programs show promise for improving nutrition and physical activity behaviors. This study warrants further investigation to demonstrate efficacy in the context of a randomized trial.