Lower Dietary Quality Among Women Who Watch More Television

Sedentary behaviors, such as television viewing (TV), and poor dietary quality have been associated with obesity. Objective To examine the relationship between TV and dietary quality using the Healthy Eating Index (HEI)‐2005 among young women. Individuals who engaged in >2 h of TV would have HEI‐2005 scores reflective of a diet higher in sodium and saturated fat, and lower in fruits and vegetables. Methods Dietary quality (HEI‐2005), sedentary behaviors, and physical activity were assessed using 7‐day diet and activity records among premenopausal women (n=95). TV time tertiles were computed (<1 h, 1–2 h, >2 h). Analysis One‐way ANOVA and Kruskal Wallis tests compared dietary quality by TV time tertile; post hoc pairwise multiple comparison procedure was used. Partial correlations, controlling for physical activity (min/d), examined the relationship between dietary quality and TV time. Results Participants in the highest TV tertile reported consuming fewer servings of whole fruit (p=0.007) and dark green and orange vegetables and legumes (p=0.024), and had a lower total HEI‐2005 score (p=0.048) when compared to participants in the lowest TV tertile. Whole fruit and total HEI‐2005 score were negatively associated with TV; significance remained after adjusting for physical activity. Conclusion This study found a negative relationship between dietary quality and TV among young women.