Social position and nutrition: a gradient relationship in Canada and the USA

Abstract

Obejctive: To study the existence of a graded relationship between the nutrient content of the diet and some measures of social position. Design and setting: The graded relationship hypothesis was veri®ed by secondary analysis performed on two different nutrition surveys: the Quebec Nutrition Survey (QNS) and the NHANES III, both based on a single 24 h recall. The data of these surveys were collected on a representative sample of two different populations, the ®rst (n 2103) in the province of Quebec (Canada) in 1990 (QNS) and the second in the US population (n 14 877) between 1988 and 1994 (NHANES III). Main outcomes measures:The social gradient hypothesis was tested with four different social position indicators. The analyses were performed separately for men and women aged from 18 to 74 y, for all the nutrients available in the databanks. For the USA, the graded relationship for the total population, for the non-Hispanic white population and for respondents sometimes or often experiencing a lack of food was also measured. Results: A graded relationship between almost all nutrients and the studied social position measurements is observed for the consumption of total calorie-adjusted nutrients, for the proportion of people eating in accordance with dietary guidelines and for the proportion of individual not meeting 75% of the respective Recommended Dietary Allowances for their country. The direction of these relationships (positive or negative) is mainly in accordance with the clinical known impacts of nutrients on chronic diseases. Conclusions: It is possible that nutrition plays a role in the graded distribution of social health inequalities in North America even in the magnitude of this contribution remains to be evaluated.

Socio-demographic influences on food purchasing among Canadian households

“…In order to explore the role of diet in socio-economic differentials in health and disease, relationships between socio-economic status (SES) and different aspects of the diet have been examined in several different countries (Smith and Baghurst, 1992;Irala-Estevez et al, 2000;Dubois and Girard, 2001;Groth et al, 2001;Giskes et al, 2002). Associations between SES and diet have also been examined along with various other factors (e.g., family status) in order to gain a better understanding of food consumption patterns in relation to dietary recommendations (Roos et al, 1998;Perez, 2002).…”

“…Associations between SES and diet have also been examined along with various other factors (e.g., family status) in order to gain a better understanding of food consumption patterns in relation to dietary recommendations (Roos et al, 1998;Perez, 2002). The measures of SES employed in these studies vary, where a single variable, such as income, education, occupation or a composite measure based on all three, is used as an indicator of SES (Roos et al, 1998;Irala-Estevez et al, 2000;Dubois and Girard, 2001;Giskes et al, 2002), or two or three variables (e.g., income and education) are included together in one model (Smith and Baghurst, 1992;Groth et al, 2001;Perez, 2002). A number of studies conducted in different countries have shown income and education to have similar effects on food consumption, where higher income and higher education are associated with greater consumption of vegetables and fruit (Billson et al, 1999;Nayga et al, 1999;Irala-Estevez et al, 2000;Groth et al, 2001;Giskes et al, 2002;Perez, 2002), and with diets more in accord with dietary guidelines (Roos et al, 1998;Mancino et al, 2004).…”

High quality nutrient intake is associated with higher household expenditures by Japanese adults

“…The mechanisms by which socioeconomic disadvantage leads to an unhealthy nutrient intake have frequently been discussed (4,8). Food choice and nutrition security are influenced by individual knowledge and training, food price and diet cost, food access, and the food environment, including neighborhood context, cultural issues, and other aspects (4,8).…”

“…People of a lower socioeconomic status in terms of education, income, occupational status, etc. have been found to have a poor quality diet (4)(5)(6)(7). An unhealthy dietary intake pattern results in increased risk factors particularly for cardiovascular disease, including obesity, diabetes, and dyslipidemia (8,9).…”

Le gradient social de l’obésité se creuse en France – Sait-on pourquoi ?

“…Les féculents raffinés et les pommes de terre sont consommés en plus grande quantité alors que les aliments recommandés pour la santé, tels que les fruits et légumes, le pain complet, les viandes maigres, les poissons et crustacés, sont sous-consommés [39][40][41][42][43] dans ces populations. Ceci s'accompagne d'un très net gradient social des apports en fibres et en micronutriments essentiels, et les différences sont plus marquées pour les nutriments trouvés en abondance dans les fruits et les légumes, tels que la vitamine C, le b-carotène, les folates [32,44,45]. En revanche, les apports en macronutriments, les lipides notamment, sont peu affectés par le SSE des individus (revue de la littérature internationale in [37]).…”