Open AccessEnergy contribution of NOVA food groups and socio-demographic determinants of ultra-processed groups among adults in Terengganu, Malaysia
Author(s) -
Asma Anjum,
Abdul Manan Ali,
Yusuf Aziz,
M Y Hayati
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
food research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.218
H-Index - 7
ISSN - 2550-2166
DOI - 10.26656/fr.2017.3(6).150
Subject(s) - marital status , environmental health , geography , consumption (sociology) , food processing , food consumption , population , socioeconomics , food science , medicine , agricultural economics , economics , sociology , social science , chemistry
The Malaysian Nutrition Research Priorities for Malaysia’s 11th Plan noted the necessity toinvestigate in depth the consumption of ultra-processed food among the Malaysianpopulation. No empirical research has focused on exploring the energy contribution ofultra-processed foods and the socio-demographic determinants of ultra-processed foods.Thus, this study was conducted to investigate the relationship between the increasingconsumption of ultra-processed foods with socio-demographic factors particularly inTerengganu, Malaysia. This cross-sectional study provides a novel approach toquantifying energy contribution of 200 adults (living in Terengganu; aged 18 to 59 years)based on the ultra-processed food classification named as NOVA, via semi-quantitativeFood Frequency Questionnaire, and to determine the association between energycontribution of ultra-processed foods and socio-demographic characteristics. The selfadministered questionnaire consists of three sections: socio-demographic profile,frequency of ultra-processed food consumption and energy contribution of NOVA foodgroups. All data were analysed using SPSS version 21. The findings show that thecontribution of ultra-processed foods among respondents was lower (40.38%) compared tounprocessed and minimally processed foods (55.73%). The most frequent consumed ultraprocessed foods were noodles and fried chicken (fast food). Meanwhile, the leastfrequently consumed foods included frozen chicken pie and garlic spread. There weresignificant associations between the energy contribution of ultra-processed foods andmarital status, educational level, monthly household income and occupational statusmeanwhile there was no significant association between age and gender at p<0.05. Thisstudy provides the first comprehensive assessment of ultra-processed foods consumptionusing NOVA classification via semi-quantitative FFQ in Malaysia.