Foods consumed away from home and energy intake in urban areas of Brazil

Abstract

In order to estimate energy sources from the consumption of away‐from‐home foods (AFHF) and investigate the association between AFHF and energy intake, day‐1 food records from 25,753 individuals (≥10yrs), living in urban areas, investigated in the 2008–2009 Brazilian nationwide Individual Dietary Survey were analyzed. The share of energy from AFHF was calculated for 33 food groups and linear regression models were developed to evaluate the association between AFHF and energy intake. All statistical analyses were weighted and took into account the sample design effect. Foods that were highly consumed away from home were alcoholic beverages (59%), baked and deep‐fried snacks (54%), pizza (42%), soft drinks (40%), sandwiches (40%), and sugar and desserts (30%). The mean energy intake from foods consumed away from home was 337 kcal, representing 18% of total energy intake. AFHF consumption was higher among men, adults and higher income. 43% of the sample reported AFHF, presenting higher energy intake than non‐consumers (2072 vs. 1802 kcal; p<0.01), even after controlling for age, sex and income (βlog energy=0.09, p<0.01). These findings suggest that the habit of consuming AFHF in Brazil may be linked to adverse health outcomes, in particular, weight gain. Funding: CAPES‐Brazil (PDEE nº6748‐10‐4).