SPROUT (Supporting Parental Responsive Feeding for Optimal Understanding of Thriving Child Development) is a new study that explores the relationship between food insecurity, family systems, and responsive feeding practices during the first 1000 days.
SPROUT aims to:
Understand the experiences of parents navigating food insecurity and the barriers they face in feeding their infants.
Explore how family systems and the home environment influence nutrition and weight outcomes in early childhood.
Identify practical, evidence-based strategies to help parents and healthcare professionals promote responsive feeding practices—an approach that encourages recognising and responding to a child’s hunger and fullness cues.
Using qualitative focus groups with both parents and healthcare professionals from the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Healthy Child Programme as part of Cambridgeshire Community Services, SPROUT will generate insights to clinical and public health guidance and improve support for families experiencing food insecurity.
Keep an eye out for updates on the SPROUT study as it progresses!
Research Team
Principal Investigator
Dr Cara Ruggiero is a registered dietitian and researcher who has recently joined our unit from Harvard Medical School. Her research focuses on understanding how behavioural and environmental factors shape obesity risk in early life, with a particular focus on parent feeding practices and family systems. Additionally, she aims to ensure public health programmes and policies are designed to support vulnerable for families in early life.
With a strong background in food insecurity research and behavioural interventions, Dr Ruggiero leads the SPROUT study, ensuring that its findings contribute to meaningful policy discussions and evidence-based recommendations for child nutrition strategies.
Co-investigator
Dr Marie Spreckley is a registered nutritionist and researcher specialising in weight management research and clinical practice. Her research draws on her clinical expertise to investigate behavioural and psychological factors that influence long-term weight management. She has a particular interest in reaching underserved populations, aiming to develop interventions that are accessible, practical, and effective for those facing health disparities.
Dr Spreckley is a co-investigator on the SPROUT study, contributing her expertise in engagement with clinical partners, qualitative methods, and health disparities,
Sponsorship and funding
SPROUT is sponsored by the University of Cambridge and supported by the Unversity of Cambridge Public Engagement Starter Fund.
