A Scoping Review and Assessing the Evidence for Nutrition Education Delivery Strategies for Refugees in High-Income Countries

Upon resettlement, refugees face many challenges, including limited knowledge of available food and food insecurity, that increase their risks of diet-related diseases. Nutrition education may help them better navigate the challenges of their new food environments and help them live healthier lives. This review assesses the evidence on nutrition education delivery strategies and outcomes among refugees in the United States and other high-income countries using Levac review guidelines. Multiple electronic databases were searched using combinations of the following terms: nutrition, food, cooking, or gardening; education, workshop, curriculum, class, literacy, or program; and refugee. The quality of the peer-reviewed papers was assessed using the Medical Education Research Study Quality Instrument (MERSQI) scoring method. A total of 1930 studies were identified, and 17 met the inclusion criteria. The mean MERSQI score of the peer-reviewed studies was 9.02 (SD, 3.3; range, 1-14). The key nutrition education delivery strategies included conducting a needs assessment and providing client-centered education, a collaborative approach in program design, and hands-on activities such as cooking and store visits. A refugee's literacy level, cultural, and language barriers are common challenges to nutrition education delivery. Because there is limited evidence regarding the efficacy of programs regarding changes in refugees' nutrition knowledge and diet-related behaviors, future research should include rigorously designed studies and the development and implementation of standardized assessment and training tools. The adoption of a context-specific and flexible model is important for effective nutrition education delivery among the refugee population.

Automated summary

This review examines nutrition education strategies and outcomes among refugees in the United States and other high-income countries. Challenges such as literacy levels, cultural barriers, and language obstacles are common in delivering nutrition education to refugees. Key strategies include conducting needs assessments, providing client-centered education, adopting a collaborative approach in program design, and incorporating hands-on activities like cooking and store visits to improve refugees' nutrition knowledge and diet-related behaviors.