Demographic and dietary profiles of high and low fat consumers in Australia.

Abstract

Study objective-To determine the sociodemographic, attitudinal, and dietary correlates of high and low fat consumption in the community. Design -The study was undertaken using a postal survey format. A questionnaire was sent for self completion to a randomised sample of the adult population of two Australian states. Participants -Adult participants were selected randomly from the Electoral Rolls of the states of Victoria and South Australia. As voting at elections is compulsory in Australia, these rolls contain the names of all Australian citizens over the age of 18 years. Altogether 3209 respondents completed the survey giving a response rate of 67%. Main results -Lower than average fat consumption was more common in women. Age was a significant factor only in men. Occupation was not related to lower than average fat consumption but manual work and low occupational prestige were linked to higher than average consumption in men. People with a history of conditions related to heart disease were more likely to be low consumers but medical history did not distinguish high from average consumers. Low fat consumption was linked to higher refined and natural sugar consumption and higher alcohol consumption, but protein and complex carbohydrate consumption did not vary with fat consumption. Low fat diets also had higher densities of fibre and most vitamins and minerals, the exceptions being retinol, zinc, and vitamin B12, nutrients generally linked to meat and dairy consumption. Of the latter, only the low zinc concentrations, which are already borderline in the community, pose a potential nutritional problem. Conclusions -This study showed very strong links between dietary fat intake and the intake of nearly all other nutrients in the diet. The results highlight the need to consider relationships between nutrients not only for purposes of nutrition education but also in relation to nutritional epidemiology studies. (J Epidemiol Community Health 1994;48:26-32)

Socio-demographic inequalities in the diets of mid-aged Australian women

“…The present findings also showed differences across socio-economic groups (assessed using occupation as an indicator), with women working in labouring or other low-skilled occupations tending to have diets least consistent with recommendations for a range of foods and nutrients, and those working as professionals tending to have the most favourable intake patterns. Although some findings are contradictory (Galobardes et al, 2001), these results concur with the balance of international evidence demonstrating that those of low socio-economic status (SES) have lower and less varied intakes of fruits and vegetables, lower intakes of many micronutrients, and higher intakes of total and saturated fats, than those of higher SES (Baghurst et al, 1994;Dobson et al, 1997;Davey Smith & Brunner, 1997;De Irala-Estevez et al, 2000;Giskes et al, 2002;Mishra et al, 2002).…”

“…There are limited large-scale population-based studies on socio-demographic variations in Australian women's diets, and existing studies have tended to restrict their examination to just a few socio-demographic or dietary variables (Baghurst et al, 1994;Evans et al, 2000;Giskes et al, 2002). The present results draw Diets of Australian women G Mishra et al attention to the subtle variation in food and nutrient intakes among mid-aged women from a range of socio-demographic backgrounds.…”

Are high-fat and low-fat consumers distinct phenotypes? differences in the subjective and behavioural response to energy and nutrient challenges

“…Moreover, it is possible to identify and categorise groups of individuals according to the amount of fat eaten. When high fat (HF; b 45 fat energy %) and low fat (LF;`35 fat energy %) individuals are compared they can be differentiated according to the types of foods consumed, amounts of other macronutrients, patterns of eating, food preferences and the degree of dietary restraint (Baghurst et al, 1994;Macdiarmid et al, 1996). Because of these clearly distinctive behavioural pro®les HF and LF have been referred to as behavioural phenotypes (Blundell & King, 1996).…”

High-fat and low-fat (behavioural) phenotypes: biology or environment?

“…Recently, some attention has been given to patterns of fat intake (for example, see Baghurst et al 1994;Macdiarmid et al 1996) and criteria for identifying individuals as high-or low-fat consumers have been established. The level of fat consumption can be determined through a food-frequency questionnaire (for example, see Margetts et al 1989).…”