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We recruited YAG members to participate in three focus groups (N=4 each) in April and May, 2017; and one pilot test (N=2) in November, 2017. Feedback suggested that participants have a range of eating out (fast foods) frequency i.e. from once a year to once a day. They have limited involvement in cooking and grocery shopping at home. YAG members urged the researchers to include: hands-on engaging activities; content on learning to read nutrition labels; cooking with various dietary restrictions and information on diabetes and its complications.

The South Asian Adolescent Diabetes Awareness Program (SAADAP) is a research-based health promotion program developed to increase awareness and knowledge of diabetes prevention strategies for South Asian (SA) adolescents with a family history of diabetes. The research team established a Youth Advisory Group (YAG) to capture youth perspectives, needs and recommendations to implement nutrition interventions for the study.

A community-based participatory research approach to guide the study has been utilized. This approach involves youth to be engaged in the research process and create social change through a collaborative partnership with the research team. Our aim for the YAG is to empower SA adolescents to contribute to positive and culturally-relevant health promotion experiences for their community.

This program encourages researchers and dietitians to consider youth to participate and provide leadership in research studies to guide nutritional interventions.

Recommendations (for researchers): Youth engagement should be considered for diabetes prevention in the SA population; Researchers should empower youth members to become leaders of their communities; Researchers should provide adequate incentives for youth to participate in research studies (e.g. volunteer hours).

Youth involvement in the development of nutritional interventions provided key insights into SA adolescents' dietary patterns that have both western and cultural influences.