A New Leaf... Choices for Healthy Living is a structured nutrition, physical activity, and smoking cessation assessment and intervention program for cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk reduction among low-income individuals residing in the southeastern U.S. The diet and activity assessments are quickly and easily administered, scored, and interpreted by non-specialists. They identify major problem areas as well as strengths in terms of diet and activity, and assess attitudes and misconceptions that may serve as barriers to dietary change or increased physical activity. In addition, assessments and counseling information is included for smoking cessation and osteoporosis prevention.

The program is designed to extend nutrition, physical activity, smoking cessation, and osteoporosis prevention services to a broader population by requiring little nutrition or exercise physiology training on the part of the counselor. Our research projects include physicians, nurses, nutritionists, health educators, and lay health advisors as program counselors. The New Leaf may also be used as a self-help packet or with groups.

New Leaf integrates behavior change theory with nutrition and exercise science in a clinically feasible intervention tool. There are 3 basic steps to the counseling process:

TO LEARN MORE about NEW LEAF click on Integrating CVD Prevention Into Existing Health Services: The Experience of the North Carolina WISEWOMAN Program and read Chapter 3: New Leaf Intervention.

To obtain more information about ordering the New Leaf notebook and cookbook, email New_Leaf@unc.edu.