Sesame street's mobile community viewing (MCV) in India: An innovative approach to promote healthy behaviors among children

Introduction. Over 165 million pre-school-age children live in India, where there is continual need for community-based interventions to promote healthy behaviors such as healthy eating and handwashing among young children. The Mobile Community Viewing (MCV) leverages a popular children's television show to promote healthy behaviors in children's communities. Intervention. The MCV program uses a re-purposed vegetable cart that rolls through narrow streets and screens Galli Galli Sim Sim (Sesame Street in Hindi) episodes, followed by activities and distribution of print materials. Since 2007, MCV activities have reached over 850,000 children and 300,000 caregivers. Evaluation Findings. Compared to neighborhoods unexposed to the MCV, children in neighborhoods with the MCV show greater gains in knowledge of healthy foods, healthier food choices, and handwashing with soap. For example, children exposed to the MCV in Mumbai activities on good nutrition show a 24 percentage point improvement in their knowledge of milk and its good effects on the body. Similarly, in a study of the MCV in Jaipur, children exposed to the MCV show a 14 percentage point increase in handwashing with soap. Implications. The MCV demonstrates the potential of low-cost interventions to engage communities and promote healthy behaviors. Government agencies, local organizations, and schools in India and abroad may utilize this approach as part of public health efforts.