Materials were designed to accomplish the objectives of conventional nutrition education/behavior change programs, but avoiding the usual dependency of traditional programs on strategies that required a high level of reading and arithmetic. Guiding principles were: the need to identify the food related conceptual, cultural, and social frameworks of members of the target audience; and develop a program that built upon already-developed, alternative communication and coping skills. The core of the system was a) a protocol for office-based patient assessment and follow up, b) an educational/motivational videotape viewed in the clinical setting, c) scripts and supporting materials for a 4-week minicourse led by a clinic staff member or volunteer, and d) a package of audiocassettes and supporting printed materials to facilitate self-directed learning over an extended time period. Printed materials emphasized the use of cards (hence the acronym 'CARDES') that delivered single concepts about nutrition or behavior change and that permitted manipulation, selection, and reorganization of information.