Food balance sheet and household budget survey dietary data and mortality patterns in Europe

Abstract

Worldwide dietary data for nutrition monitoring and surveillance are commonly derived from food balance sheets (FBS) and household budget surveys (HBS). We have compared food supply from FBS and food availability data from HBS among eighteen European countries and have estimated the extent to which they correlate, focusing on food groups which are comparably captured by FBS and HBS and for which there is epidemiological evidence that they can have a noticeable impact on population mortality. Spearman's correlation coefficient was þ0·78 (P,10 23 ) for vegetables (including legumes), þ 0·76 (P,10 23 ) for fruits, þ0·69 (P,10 23 ) for fish and seafood and þ0·93 (P,10 23 ) for olive oil. With respect to meat and meat products, the coefficient was lower at þ0·39 (P¼0·08). Moreover, we have examined whether the supply (FBS) or the availability (HBS) of food groups known or presumed to have beneficial effect on the occurrence of CHD and total cancer can predict overall, coronary and cancer mortality in ecological analyses. After controlling for purchasing power parity-adjusted gross domestic product and tobacco smoking we found that for vegetables, fruits, fish and seafood, as well as for olive oil, both the FBS and the HBS estimates were inversely associated with all three indicators of mortality, although the number of countries with complete information on all study variables hindered formal statistical documentation (P.0·05 in some instances). FBS and HBS have their own strengths and weaknesses, but they may complement each other in dietary assessments at the population level.

Are the eating habits of university students different to the rest of the Spanish population? Food availability, consumption and cost

“…Our results are similar to those of previous studies by Rodríguez et al (1996), SerraMajem et al (2003), Rodrigues et al (2007) and Naska et al (2009), for all of the food groups with the exception of beverages (nondairy). For the category of beverages (nondairy), for both the HBS and the university students in Castilla-La Mancha, consumption levels are higher than availability, where the difference is more significant for the group of young university students.…”

“…Studies based on food surveys show the eating models of a group of countries (Lagiou & Trichopoulou, 2001;Serra-Majem et al, 2003;Naska et al, 2009), those of a particular country (Lagiou & Trichopoulou, 2001;Rodrigues et al, 2007) or the worldwide tendencies of food consumption (Kearney, 2010).…”

Discrepancies among ecological, household, and individual data on fruits and vegetables consumption in Brazil

“…The median FAO/FBS:IDIS ratio for all the 15 countries was 1.51 (even though this value involves large variations between-country) 22 . One important difference to highlight in this previous study is 23 . The original data for this former study, likewise, came from studies conducted during different periods over a time span of 20 year (1980 to 2000) once again making comparisons -between the countries or to our estimations -susceptible to the same bias mentioned previously.…”

European Code against Cancer 4th Edition: Diet and cancer

“…Sugary drinks are more available in Western European households [46]. Overall, higher educational level in the household is correlated with higher availability of fish, fruits, and vegetables.…”