The present review provides an investigation into the food choice decisions made by individuals in relation to fruit and vegetable consumption. A comprehensive body of evidence now exists concerning the protective effect of fruit and vegetables against a number of diseases, particularly cardiovascular disease and certain forms of cancer. Current UK recommendations are to increase intakes of fruit and vegetables to 400 g/person per d. In the main body of the review the factors that affect food choice decisions of adults in relation to fruit and vegetable consumption are studied, following a suggested framework of food choice. Factors covered include sensory appeal, familiarity and habit, social interactions, cost, availability, time constraints, personal ideology, media and advertising and health. The content of the review shows just how complex the food choice process can be. Health promotion techniques can be better targeted towards certain groups of individuals, all holding similar sets of values, when making food choice decisions. Food choice, in relation to fruit and vegetable intake, needs to be studied in more depth, in order to provide effective nutrition education programmes, in particular the sets of priorities that different sub-groups of the population consider when making food choice decisions.
Background: Despite recommendations to increase fruit and vegetable consumption within the UK population, intakes are still too low. In order to stimulate dietary behaviour change the determinants of food choice need to be explored. Objectives: To investigate how the priorities of high consumers of fruit and vegetables differ from those of low consumers, with respect to food choice motivations, and to identify what value high and low consumers place on different aspects of food choice behaviour. Design: A 4-day food diary and a questionnaire, including The Food Choice Questionnaire (FCQ) and a measure of Stage of Change (SOC) for fruit and vegetable consumption, were administered to subjects. Motivation scores from the FCQ were compared with fruit and vegetable intake and SOC data. Subjects: Nine hundred and ninety-eight females, aged 35 -69 years, participating in the UK Women's Cohort Study. Results: In a multiple linear regression model, including age, education level and all FCQ motivations, the strongest motivations specifically affecting fruit and vegetable intake were health and natural content. It was found that, for a one point increase (measured on a scale of 0-4) in health and natural content scores, fruit and vegetable consumption increased by 1.11 portions (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.5-1.7) and 0.84 portions (95% CI 0.4-1.3), respectively ðP , 0:01Þ: The SOC evaluation showed significant associations with portions of fruit and vegetables consumed ðP , 0:01Þ: Women whose SOC was classed as maintenance phase were found to score higher on health, natural content, weight control and ethical concern factors ðP , 0:01Þ: These women also scored lower on convenience questions ðP , 0:01Þ: Conclusion: In this particular group of women the most important motivating factors for food choice, within the high fruit and vegetable consumers, were health and natural content of the food.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.