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Do Adolescents Consume High Levels of Non-Core Food At Eateries?

by Amrita Surendranath on May 17, 2017 at 4:04 PM
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Highlights:

A research team from The University of Bristol has found that adolescents get most of their unhealthy food from fast food outlets, restaurants and caf�s, and from school. The study that highlights the source of the non-core foods like chips, soft drinks and sweets was presented at the European Congress on Obesity (ECO), held at Portugal.

Non-Core Foods

A healthy diet should include the five core food groups and the Australian Food and Nutrition Monitoring Group recommends that adequate servings from each group should be consumed every day to fulfill the requirements of the body. Foods that do not fit into these groups are called non-core groups.


According to the group

The National Nutrition Survey in Australia showed that

The food choices of children are largely determined by the environment. When adolescents consume a diet that is high in non-core foods, it could lead to increased body mass index and adiposity Identifying the source of these non-core foods will help in developing effective interventional strategies that can then be used to curb the high obesity rates.

Identifying the Source of Non-Core Foods

The research team from Bristol led by Zoi Toumpakari analyzed data from the UK National Diet and Nutrition Surveys 2008-12 which included 884 adolescents. The food diary of the adolescents over a period of 4 days was used. The diaries included details about

The research team used computer modeling to identify the association between non-core food intake and eating context. Other confounders like gender, age, socio-economic status and time spent watching TV were adjusted for. The adolescents were interviewed in person to find out why they consumed the non-core food groups, which included a total of 18 interviews among adolescents aged between 14 and 16 years.

‘Cultivating healthy eating practices when eating with friends could promote better health.’

The study found that

The study also found why eateries were popular among adolescents

What level of non-core food groups consumption was identified by the research team?

Soft drinks were the most popular non-core drink that was consumed by adolescents. These also contributed the most energy.

Targeting the Source of Non-Core Foods

The study showed that adolescent eating patterns were dictated more by the occasions that they were involved in, like shopping or going to the movie, rather than specific food selection. Therefore, the results of the study could be used to improve the quality of food served in such places, especially at school, rather than targeting individual children. Eateries are frequented by adolescents as they see it as an opportunity to socialize. Effective interventions could be aimed at lowering portion sizes at such eateries which will lower consumption of non-core food groups.

The authors stated that improving the environment at home, making it conducive to adolescent eating habits and lowering repetitive dishes will encourage adolescents to eat at home more often. A sociable and relaxing environment could be created at home, which will make adolescents socialize with their friends at home, rather than outside.

References:

  1. Adolescents' non-core food intake: a description of what, where and with whom adolescents consume non-core foods - (https:www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26878965)
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