FAQs

For additional questions or feedback, contact:

Janis Randall Simpson, Professor Emerita

Department of Family Relations and Applied Nutrition

University of Guelph

rjanis@uoguelph.ca

What is NutriSTEP^®?

• Valid and reliable nutrition 17-item nutrition screening questionnaires for parents/caregivers of toddlers (18-35 months) and preschoolers (3-5 years) that can be completed in about 5 minutes.
• Completion of all 17 questions generates a score indicating the potential for nutrition-related problems. Parents/caregivers would typically complete a “paper” version of the questionnaire.
• NutriSTEP^® screening programs are generally implemented by health service providers such as public health, school boards, primary health care providers, etc.
• Parents/caregivers are directed to appropriate resources by the health service providers implementing the screening initiative. · Free licences are available at: Acquire a Licence

How will the data collected from Nutri-eSTEP be used?

• The data collected are aggregate data on user responses and are for use of the NutriSTEP^® research team for generating reports and for research.

Are the NutriSTEP^® questions available to health service providers?

• The Preschool NutriSTEP^® questions are the copyright of the Sudbury & District Health Unit, Heather Keller and Janis Randall Simpson.
• The Toddler NutriSTEP^® questions are the copyright of Lee Rysdale, Heather Keller and Janis Randall Simpson.
• Licence to use the NutriSTEP^® questionnaires can be obtained at: Acquire a Licence.

What is Nutri-eSTEP?

• Online versions of the NutriSTEP^® questionnaires are located on a University of Guelph website (www.nutristep.ca).
• STEP 1: General demographic information is collected including: age and gender of the child; relationship to the child; province; and, the first three digits of the Canadian postal code.
• STEP 2: The 17 NutriSTEP^® questions are presented on individual screens; “Need Help” provides additional information about each question.
• STEP 3: Users receive immediate feedback. The feedback messages for each question are categorized into “What is Going Well” and “What to Work On”, depending on the response to the question. Each question has a succinct Feedback message, as well as a “Learn More” button to read additional details and healthy eating tips.
• STEP 4: Links to credible nutrition resources are provided.
• Users can print results and feedback messages for themselves. They are not able to access their results after they leave the site.
• There are no scores provided to users for individual questions or a total score.

Are the Nutri-eSTEP feedback messages available to health service providers?

• The NutriSTEP^® site is the copyright of the University of Guelph. Terms of Use must be respected.
• Nutri-eSTEP Feedback Messages are the copyright of the NutriSTEP^® Research Team. Terms of use must be respected.
• Parent-friendly messages for Toddler and Preschool healthy eating are available at: Unlock Foods.ca.