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Cost and affordability of healthy, equitable and sustainable diets in low socioeconomic groups in australia

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journal contribution
posted on 2024-06-15, 08:04 authored by M Lewis, Sarah McNaughtonSarah McNaughton, L Rychetnik, AJ Lee
Few Australians consume a healthy, equitable and more sustainable diet consistent with the Australian Dietary Guidelines (ADGs). Low socioeconomic groups (SEGs) suffer particularly poor diet-related health problems. However, granular information on dietary intakes and affordability of recommended diets was lacking for low SEGs. The Healthy Diets Australian Standardised Affordability and Pricing protocol was modified for low SEGs to align with relevant dietary intakes reported in the National Nutrition Survey 2011–2012(which included less healthy and more discretionary options than the broader population), household structures, food purchasing habits, and incomes. Cost and affordability of habitual and recommended diets of low SEGs were calculated using prices of ‘standard brands’ and ‘cheapest options’. With ‘standard brands’, recommended diets cost less than habitual diets, but were unaffordable for low SEGs. With ‘cheapest options’, both diets were more affordable, but recommended diets cost more than habitual diets for some low SEGs, potentially contributing to perceptions that healthy food is unaffordable. The study confirms the need for an equity lens to better target dietary guidelines for low SEGs. It also highlights urgent policy action is needed to help improve affordability of recommended diets.

History

Journal

Nutrients

Volume

13

Article number

ARTN 2900

Pagination

1 - 19

Location

Switzerland

Open access

  • Yes

ISSN

2072-6643

eISSN

2072-6643

Language

English

Publication classification

C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal

Issue

8

Publisher

MDPI