This paper describes the effect of the Maryland Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program on the diets of program participants. We examined the diets of program participants while they were enrolled and after they had graduated from the program. The diets of graduates (n = 129) and new enrollees (n = 194) were analyzed. We compared the graduates' food recalls at enrollment, graduation, and follow-up approximately 20 months later. Diet scores were based on the number of servings consumed in comparison to the number recommended in the Daily Food Guide. During the program, participants made positive dietary changes, and after graduating they maintained threefourths of those changes. The diets of the graduates at follow-up were better than those of new enrollees. An examination of graduates who were initially consuming 3 or more servings per day in the fifth food group (fats, sweets, alcohol, and other foods) revealed that they reduced their consumption of these foods during participation, and their consumption at follow-up was below initial levels. These positive changes in the total diet of graduates occurred even though their purchasing power declined during
enrollment.