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Determinants of vegetable and fruit consumption in Mexican children
Author(s) -
PérezLizaur Ana Berta,
KauferHorwitz Martha
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.20.5.a1006-a
Subject(s) - consumption (sociology) , cronbach's alpha , obesity , medicine , environmental health , psychological intervention , population , overweight , health promotion , food frequency questionnaire , life expectancy , gerontology , demography , public health , clinical psychology , social science , nursing , psychiatry , sociology , psychometrics
Epidemiological evidence has confirmed that populations with a rich vegetable and fruit (V&F) diet (>5 servings per day) have lower risk of developing child obesity, cancer and cardiovascular disease. In Mexico, the average population eats approximately two servings of V&F per day. Based on the Social Cognitive Theory (SCT), our aim was to identify the determinants of V&F consumption in children from 2nd to 4th grades of elementary school in two schools in Mexico City, with the purpose of making effective interventions in the promotion of a correct diet throughout life. The first step was to validate a questionnaire exploring the different areas of the SCT. Preliminary results were explored in 33 children during the validation of the questionnaire (Cronbach's alpha = 0.86). Children reported consumption of less than 2 V&F servings/day and an average of 3 hours of TV/day. Only 0.27 reported accessibility to ready‐to‐eat fruits, 0.75 of the children reported high expectations to increase their V&F consumption. The prelimary results show that self efficacy, knowledge, accesibility, expectancy and preferences determine vegetable and fruit consumption.