Adolescents’ perception of dietary behaviour in a public school in Chile: a focus groups study

Vío, Fernando; Olaya, Marcela; Yañez, Marisol; Montenegro, Edith

doi:10.1186/s12889-020-08908-x

Cited by 7 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 18 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Although numerous studies have shown that nutrition knowledge often does not translate into good dietary habits among adolescents, numerous recent intervention reports and reviews have shown improved dietary practices as a result of improvements in nutrition knowledge in this age group [ 20 , 73 , 74 , 75 , 76 , 77 , 78 , 79 , 80 , 81 , 82 ]. Nutrition education has been incorporated into the curricula of primary and secondary schools in Nigeria; however, recent research has shown poor levels of nutrition knowledge in public secondary schools in the country [ 21 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Why Acute Undernutrition? A Qualitative Exploration of Food Preferences, Perceptions and Factors Underlying Diet in Adolescent Girls in Rural Communities in Nigeria

Sosanya,

Freeland-Graves,

Gbemileke

et al. 2024

Nutrients

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: Adolescent girls are nutritionally vulnerable due to their rapid growth and increased nutrient requirements. Nigeria has the sixth-largest population in the world. This study qualitatively explored the food preferences, perceptions of nutritive value and factors underlying food consumption of adolescent girls in rural communities in Nigeria. Methods: The data were collected via the free listing of foods and focus group sessions conducted in the Hausa language with 48 unmarried adolescent girls. The discussions were audio-recorded, transcribed, translated into English, and analyzed using a deductive thematic framework. Results: The mean age of the respondents was 13.0 ± 2.7, and almost half (48%) had a primary school education. A total of 19 and 23 foods were identified as preferred, and perceived as nourishing, respectively. The top 10 foods present on both free lists overlapped considerably in terms of cognitive salience. The focus group themes included nutrition knowledge, food preferences, autonomy, household food allocation, courtship practices, and agricultural landscapes and economic access. The participants had minimal knowledge of nutrients and food groups, and their preferred foods were limited in diversity. The key factors in food preferences were desirable health effects, sensory attributes, and the contribution of foods to a desirable body image for marriage. Household food choices depended on parents. Thus, a desire for independence was an incentive for early marriage, mostly at 13 to 17 years. Gender inequities in household food distribution (quantity) and animal protein intake were reported. The participants believed that boys need more food for strength to impregnate girls. As part of a courtship practice, the girls received gifts of animal source foods from potential suitors. The food options were limited by financial challenges and low agricultural diversity. Conclusion: To interrupt the cycle of inadequate food consumption and undernutrition in these adolescent girls, policy makers need to promote nutrition education and address the underlying determinants of inequitable access to nutritious foods.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Why Acute Undernutrition? A Qualitative Exploration of Food Preferences, Perceptions and Factors Underlying Diet in Adolescent Girls in Rural Communities in Nigeria

Sosanya,

Freeland-Graves,

Gbemileke

et al. 2024

Nutrients

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Early adolescence would seem an ideal age for such programs [8,9]. During adolescence, the individual becomes more independent with respect to many matters including lifestyle choices [10,11].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An SMS chatbot digital educational program to increase healthy eating behaviors in adolescence: A multifactorial randomized controlled trial among 7,890 participants in the Danish National Birth Cohort

Bjerregaard,

Zoughbie,

Hansen

et al. 2024

PLoS Med

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Few cost-effective strategies to shift dietary habits of populations in a healthier direction have been identified. We examined if participating in a chatbot health education program transmitted by Short Messages Service (“SMS-program”) could improve adolescent dietary behaviors and body weight trajectories. We also explored possible added effects of maternal or peer involvement. Methods and findings We conducted a randomized controlled trial (RCT) among adolescents from the Danish National Birth Cohort (DNBC). Eligible were adolescents who during 2015 to 2016 at age 14 years had completed a questionnaire assessing height, weight, and dietary habits. Two thirds were offered participation in an SMS-program, whereas 1/3 (“non-SMS group”) received no offer. The SMS program aimed to improve 3 key dietary intake behaviors: sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs), fruit and vegetables (FV), and fish. The offered programs had 3 factorially randomized schemes; the aims of these were to test effect of asking the mother or a friend to also participate in the health promotion program, and to test the effect of a 4-week individually tailored SMS program against the full 12-week SMS program targeting all 3 dietary factors. Height and weight and intakes of SSB, FV, and fish were assessed twice by a smartphone-based abbreviated dietary questionnaire completed at 6 months (m) and 18 m follow-up. Main outcome measures were (1) body mass index (BMI) z-score; and (2) an abbreviated Healthy Eating Index (mini-HEI, 1 m window, as mean of z-scores for SSB, FV, and fish). Among the 7,890 randomized adolescents, 5,260 were assigned to any SMS program; 63% (3,338) joined the offered program. Among the 7,890 randomized, 74% (5,853) and 68% (5,370) responded to follow-ups at 6 m and 18 m, respectively. Effects were estimated by intention-to-treat (ITT) analyses and inverse probability weighted per-protocol (IPW-PP) analyses excluding adolescents who did not join the program. Mean (standard deviation (SD)) mini-HEI at baseline, 6 m and 18 m was −0.01 (0.64), 0.01 (0.59), and −0.01 (0.59), respectively. In ITT-analyses, no effects were observed, at any time point, in those who had received any SMS program compared to the non-SMS group, on BMI z-score (6 m: −0.010 [95% confidence interval (CI) −0.035, 0.015]; p = 0.442, 18 m: 0.002 [95% CI −0.029, 0.033]; p = 0.901) or mini-HEI (6 m: 0.016 [95% CI −0.011, 0.043]; p = 0.253, 18m: −0.016 [95% CI −0.045, 0.013]; p = 0.286). In IPW-PP analyses, at 6 m, a small decrease in BMI z-score (−0.030 [95% CI −0.057, −0.003]; p = 0.032) was observed, whereas no significant effect was observed in mini-HEI (0.027 [95% CI −0.002, 0.056]; p = 0.072), among those who had received any SMS program compared to the non-SMS group. At 18 m, no associations were observed (BMI z-score: −0.006 [95% CI −0.039, 0.027]; p = 0.724, and mini-HEI: −0.005 [95% CI −0.036, 0.026]; p = 0.755). The main limitations of the study were that DNBC participants, though derived from the general population, tend to have higher socioeconomic status than average, and that outcome measures were self-reported. Conclusions In this study, a chatbot health education program delivered through an SMS program had no effect on dietary habits or weight trajectories in ITT analyses. However, IPW-PP-analyses, based on those 63% who had joined the offered SMS program, suggested modest improvements in weight development at 6 m, which had faded at 18 m. Future research should focus on developing gender-specific messaging programs including “booster” messages to obtain sustained engagement. Clinical Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02809196 https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT02809196.

show abstract

“…Food consumption patterns have shifted to diets that are high in fat and insufficient in fruits and vegetables [ 6 ], and these habits can be possibly maintained into adulthood [ 9 ]. Since adolescence is a stage where individuals begin to make their own eating decisions, this provides a critical opportunity for introducing interventions that can influence attitudes toward healthy eating [ 3 , 14 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Association between nutrient intake from vegetables and BMI category of in-school adolescents in urban and rural areas in Davao City, Philippines

Calumba

Castro

Delima

et al. 2023

Dialogues in Health

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Adolescents’ perception of dietary behaviour in a public school in Chile: a focus groups study

Cited by 7 publications

References 18 publications

Why Acute Undernutrition? A Qualitative Exploration of Food Preferences, Perceptions and Factors Underlying Diet in Adolescent Girls in Rural Communities in Nigeria

Why Acute Undernutrition? A Qualitative Exploration of Food Preferences, Perceptions and Factors Underlying Diet in Adolescent Girls in Rural Communities in Nigeria

An SMS chatbot digital educational program to increase healthy eating behaviors in adolescence: A multifactorial randomized controlled trial among 7,890 participants in the Danish National Birth Cohort

Association between nutrient intake from vegetables and BMI category of in-school adolescents in urban and rural areas in Davao City, Philippines

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About