The Impact of Cooking and Related Food Skills on Healthiness of Diets

• Project start date: 1 March 2014
• Project status: Completed
• Project type: Nutrition
• Discipline: Food skills
• Principal researcher/s: Dr Moira Dean, QU
• Collaborator/s: Prof Martin Caraher City University, London, Dr Lynsey Hollywood, University of Ulster Coleraine, Amanda Mc-Cloat St. Angela’s College, Sligo, Dr Elaine Mooney St. Angela’s College Sligo, Prof Monique Raats, University of Surrey, Dr Michelle Spence, Queens University Belfast

Research objective

• To examine definitions of food skills from the international literature
• To provide a summary of key food skills as a basis for further research on this issue on the island of Ireland
• To explore influences on food skills
• To investigate the relationship between food skills, dietary quality, food safety and health.

Outputs

Research report

• Title: Food skills: definitions, influences and relationship with health [PDF]
• Publication date: 30 September 2014
• Summary: Knowledge of nutrition and healthy eating alone is not sufficient to improve dietary standards. Other competencies are needed to translate this knowledge into practice.
• Findings:
  • Knowledge of nutrition and healthy eating is not sufficient to improve dietary standards; other food skills are also needed to translate this knowledge into practice.
  • It is unclear whether there is a decline in food skills because of the ready availability of convenience products, or whether these skills have changed due to changes in modern technology and food availability.
  • Food skills equip consumers with the ability to prepare meals for themselves.
  • Definitions of food skills in literature vary but common themes of planning, preparation and practical competencies are featured.
  • The lack of a reliable measurement tool to assess food skills is a fundamental barrier to the study of food skills.
  • Food skills are complex as they encompass perceptual and conceptual skills, such as planning, organising and budgeting.
  • Factors such as age, gender, social class, knowledge and attitudes can influence food skills.
  • Convenience foods have introduced variety into diets; however, their excessive consumption is linked with changes in body fat percentage and BMI.
  • Evidence suggests that the ability to cook may be linked to health as it encourages positive attitudes to healthy eating by fostering an awareness of what food is.
  • Lack of food skills may have a negative influence on dietary quality as it can lead to a reliance on pre-prepared foods and takeaways.
  • Families, especially mothers are reported as the main source of learning about basic cooking skills.
  • Cooking classes in schools are also a major source of learning for food skills.
  • It’s suggested that today’s younger generation is not acquiring adequate food skills due to parents cooking less frequently and lack of availability and engagement in practical learning courses in schools.
  • It is important to emphasize food skills training as lack of such skills may hinder attempts at changing food-related behaviour.
  • Lack of time, attitudes, cost, lack of skills and confidence have been cited as barriers to cooking.
  • The majority of parents report that it is important for children to learn how to cook and most children surveyed report that they would like to improve their cooking skills. However, only half the children reported cooking, at most, twice a year at school.
  • Increasing interest in home cooking can be observed on the island of Ireland, with 42% of consumers reporting that they cook their evening meal from scratch on six or more evenings a week.
• Recommendations:
  1. Those working in this field should not assume a shared and implicit understanding of what constitutes food skills and that these are the same for everyone.
  2. A clear definition of food skills must be developed to allow for comparisons across populations, settings and time.
  3. Health professionals should be aware of the lack of food skills as a barrier to dietary improvement and aim to address this issue to increase the effectiveness of public health campaigns.
  4. Special attention should be given to population groups such as men, which have been shown to be lacking adequate food skills.
  5. Policy makers and educators should place a greater emphasis on teaching food skills, to children through practical lessons at schools.
  6. Parents and other caregivers should be encouraged to pass on these skills to younger generations.

  You can download the report below.

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