Changing Dietary Habits Early in Life: A Field Experiment with Low-Income Families

We evaluate the malleability of dietary habits early on in life with two interventions targeting low-income families with very young children. The interventions were conducted over 12 weeks and evaluated with a field experiment involving 285 families. Families in the treatment groups were asked either to prepare healthy meals with ingredients delivered to their door, or to avoid snacking and eat at regular times. We find that both interventions decreased children’s body mass index relative to the control group. The effect persisted for 3 years for the first intervention, but faded away for the second.