Dataset Information

Dietary patterns and their associations with home food availability among Finnish pre-school children: a cross-sectional study.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

To study the associations between home food availability and dietary patterns among pre-school children.

Design

Cross-sectional study in which parents of the participating children filled in an FFQ and reported how often they had certain foods in their homes. We derived dietary pattern scores using principal component analysis, and composite scores describing the availability of fruits and vegetables as well as sugar-enriched foods in the home were created for each participant. We used multilevel models to investigate the associations between availability and dietary pattern scores.

Setting

The DAGIS study, Finland.

Subjects

The participants were 864 Finnish 3-6-year-old children recruited from sixty-six pre-schools. The analyses included 711 children with sufficient data.

Results

We identified three dietary patterns explaining 16·7 % of the variance. The patterns were named 'sweets-and-treats' (high loadings of e.g. sweet biscuits, chocolate, ice cream), 'health-conscious' (high loadings of e.g. nuts, natural yoghurt, berries) and 'vegetables-and-processed meats' (high loadings of e.g. vegetables, cold cuts, fruit). In multivariate models, the availability of fruits and vegetables was inversely associated with the sweets-and-treats pattern (β=-0·05, P<0·01) and positively associated with the health-conscious (β=0·07, P<0·01) and vegetables-and-processed meats patterns (β=0·06, P<0·01). The availability of sugar-enriched foods was positively associated with the sweets-and-treats pattern (β=0·10, P<0·01) and inversely associated with the health-conscious pattern (β=-0·03, P<0·01).

Conclusions

Considering dietary patterns, the availability of sugar-enriched foods in the home seems to have a stronger role than that of fruits and vegetables. Parents should restrict the availability of unhealthy foods in the home.

SUBMITTER: Vepsalainen H

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10261520 | biostudies-literature | 2018 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Dietary patterns and their associations with home food availability among Finnish pre-school children: a cross-sectional study.

Vepsäläinen Henna H Korkalo Liisa L Mikkilä Vera V Lehto Reetta R Ray Carola C Nissinen Kaija K Skaffari Essi E Fogelholm Mikael M Koivusilta Leena L Roos Eva E Erkkola Maijaliisa M

Public health nutrition 20180114 7

<h4>Objective</h4>To study the associations between home food availability and dietary patterns among pre-school children.<h4>Design</h4>Cross-sectional study in which parents of the participating children filled in an FFQ and reported how often they had certain foods in their homes. We derived dietary pattern scores using principal component analysis, and composite scores describing the availability of fruits and vegetables as well as sugar-enriched foods in the home were created for each parti ...[more]

PMID: 29331168

Similar Datasets

Project description:We investigated the roles of home and school environments on dietary patterns among children from 12 countries differing widely in geographic region and levels of human and economic development.The sample included a total of 6685 (54% girls) 9-11-year-old children. Parents/guardians reported the availability of certain foods in the home, and trained researchers performed school audits recording the availability of foods for sale at schools. Foods were then divided into wholesome (nutrient-dense) and empty-calorie (nutrient-poor) foods and scored according to their availability. Children reported if their school provided school lunch and how many times during the last week they had eaten meals prepared away from home and school. Via principal components analysis, data-driven dietary pattern scores were calculated from food frequency questionnaires. Multilevel models were used to study the associations between home and school food environments (wholesome and empty-calorie foods) and dietary patterns (healthy and unhealthy diet pattern scores).For low unhealthy diet pattern scores, low availability of empty-calorie foods at home was found to be more important than high availability of wholesome foods. More meals eaten outside home and school were associated with the higher unhealthy diet pattern scores. The availability of wholesome foods at home was positively associated with the healthy diet pattern scores. Food availability at school was not associated with the dietary patterns.In this sample, the home food environment was more significant than the school food environment in predicting the dietary patterns. The availability of empty-calorie foods was associated with the unhealthy dietary pattern even when the availability of wholesome foods at home was high. Meals prepared away from home contributed to the unhealthy dietary pattern. Therefore, parents should be encouraged to limit the availability of empty-calorie foods and eating outside the home.

Dataset Information

Dietary patterns and their associations with home food availability among Finnish pre-school children: a cross-sectional study.

Objective

Design

Setting

Subjects

Results

Conclusions

Publications

Dietary patterns and their associations with home food availability among Finnish pre-school children: a cross-sectional study.

Similar Datasets

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