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Children's fruit and vegetable intake : Associations with the neighbourhood food environment

Version 2 2024-06-03, 09:22
Version 1 2014-10-28, 08:38
journal contribution
posted on 2024-06-03, 09:22 authored by Anna TimperioAnna Timperio, Kylie BallKylie Ball, R Roberts, Karen CampbellKaren Campbell, N Andrianopoulos, David CrawfordDavid Crawford
Objective : To examine associations between availability of different types of food outlets and children's fruit and vegetable intake.
Method : Parents of 340 5–6 and 461 10–12 year-old Australian children reported how frequently their child ate 14 fruits and 13 vegetables in the last week in 2002/3. A geographic information system (GIS) was used to determine the availability of the following types of food outlets near home: greengrocers; supermarkets; convenience stores; fast food outlets; restaurants, cafés and takeaway outlets. Logistic regression analyses examined the likelihood of consuming fruit ≥ 2 times/day and vegetables ≥ 3 times/day, according to access to food outlets.
Results : Overall, 62.5% of children ate fruit ≥ 2 times/day and 46.4% ate vegetables ≥ 3 times/day. The more fast food outlets (OR = 0.82, 95%CI = 0.67–0.99) and convenience stores (OR = 0.84, 95%CI = 0.73–0.98) close to home, the lower the likelihood of consuming fruit ≥ 2 times/day. There was also an inverse association between density of convenience stores and the likelihood of consuming vegetables ≥ 3 times/day (OR = 0.84, 95%CI = 0.74–0.95). The likelihood of consuming vegetables ≥ 3 times/day was greater the farther children lived from a supermarket (OR = 1.27, 95%CI = 1.07–1.51) or a fast food outlet (OR = 1.19, 95%CI = 1.06–1.35).
Conclusion : Availability of fast food outlets and convenience stores close to home may have a negative effect on children's fruit and vegetable intake.

History

Journal

Preventive medicine

Volume

46

Pagination

331-335

Location

San Diego, Calif.

ISSN

0091-7435

eISSN

1096-0260

Language

eng

Publication classification

C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal

Copyright notice

2007, Elsevier

Issue

4

Publisher

Academic Press