Document 1026
 DOCN  M94A1026
 TI    Determining the nutrition needs of an ethnically diverse urban
       population with HIV/AIDS.
 DT    9412
 AU    Kraak V; Stricker JD; Utermohlen V; God's Love We Deliver, NY, NY.
 SO    Int Conf AIDS. 1994 Aug 7-12;10(2):226 (abstract no. PB0916). Unique
       Identifier : AIDSLINE ICA10/94371549
 AB    OBJECTIVE: Determine the comprehensive nutrition needs of an ethnically
       diverse population throughout the continuum of HIV with the goal of
       developing a culturally competent nutrition education and counseling
       program for people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWAs). METHODS: A nutrition
       needs assessment was conducted by God's Love We Deliver (GLWD) within
       the five boroughs of New York City between January and September 1992.
       Anonymous mail-in surveys containing multiple choice and open-ended
       questions were distributed to community-based AIDS service organizations
       (ASOs) and made available to asymptomatic and symptomatic HIV+ adult men
       and women directly served by them. Responses from 436 completed surveys
       were entered into an IBM database, translated into SYSTAT, and analyzed
       by HIV risk factor, length of diagnosis, ethnicity and sex. Survey
       questions and focus groups addressed: weight loss; meal and nutritional
       supplement consumption; utilization of free food assistance and
       nutrition counseling; symptoms affecting nutritional intake; sources of
       nutrition information; and relevant topics people would like to discuss
       in counseling sessions. RESULTS: ANOVA found injecting drug users (IDUs)
       to have a greater decrease in BMI than non-IDUs (p < 0.02) and an AIDS
       diagnosis longer than non-IDUs (p < 0.02). Open-ended question analysis
       revealed serious deficits in nutrition service utilization: 61% reported
       losing an average of 22# in one year; 51% did not use nutritional
       supplements; 65.1% of the ethnic groups surveyed were not effectively
       utilizing all forms of free food assistance available to them; multiple
       symptoms affecting intake were experienced simultaneously (poor appetite
       = 33.9%; diarrhea = 27.5%; nausea = 25.7%; mouth sores = 16.5%;
       constipation = 15.8%; difficulty swallowing and taste changes = 8.7%);
       59% of the respondents had not received nutrition counseling and of
       those who had, 50% were White, 33% Black and 25% Latino. Sources of
       nutrition information include: physicians = 43.8%; friends = 38.3%;
       magazines = 36.7%; and nutritionists = 27.5%. Respondents wanted to
       learn: what to eat to maintain or gain quality muscle weight; how to
       modify eating habits for specific problems; food safety practices for
       minimizing food-borne infections; appropriate doses of vitamin and
       mineral supplements to correct deficiencies and enhance immune function;
       how to access nutritional supplements; and how to cook healthy meals on
       a limited budget. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicate the need for
       culturally competent nutrition education and counseling targeting
       ethnically diverse groups with particular emphasis for active and
       recovering IDUs. GLWD therefore created a flexible counseling program
       offering individual, family and group counseling. A nutrition guide
       targeting ethnic substance users in recovery was created addressing:
       relationship between recovery and nutrition, skills for staying in
       recovery, ethnic food choices for maintaining and rebuilding muscle
       mass, and guidelines for nutrition management at different stages of
       HIV. GLWD's nutrition needs assessment helped to tailor our nutrition
       education program to meet a diverse community's expressed needs in order
       to enhance relevancy and utilization.
 DE    Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome/*THERAPY  Counseling  Ethnic Groups
       Female  Health Education  Human  HIV Infections/*THERAPY  Male  New York
       City  *Nutrition  Nutrition Surveys  Substance Abuse, Intravenous  Urban
       Population  MEETING ABSTRACT

       SOURCE: National Library of Medicine.  NOTICE: This material may be
       protected by Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.Code).