Trends in racial/ethnic and income disparities in foods and beverages consumed and purchased from stores among US households with children, 2000–2013,

Abstract

Background: It is unclear whether racial/ethnic and income differences in foods and beverages obtained from stores contribute to disparities in caloric intake over time. Objective: We sought to determine whether there are disparities in calories obtained from store-bought consumer packaged goods (CPGs), whether brands (name brands compared with private labels) matter, and if disparities have changed over time. Design: We used NHANES individual dietary intake data among households with children along with the Nielsen Homescan data on CPG purchases among households with children. With NHANES, we compared survey-weighted energy intakes for 2003-2006 and 2009-2012 from store and nonstore sources by race/ethnicity [non-Hispanic whites (NHWs), non-Hispanic blacks (NHBs), and Hispanic Mexican-Americans) and income [#185% federal poverty line (FPL), 186-400% FPL, and .400% FPL]. With the Nielsen data, we compared 2000-2013 trends in calories purchased from CPGs (obtained from stores) across brands by race/ ethnicity (NHW, NHB, and Hispanic) and income. We conducted random-effect models to derive adjusted trends and differences in calories purchased (708,175 observations from 64,709 unique households) and tested whether trends were heterogeneous by race/ethnicity or income. Results: Store-bought foods and beverages represented the largest component of dietary intake, with greater decreases in energy intakes in nonstore sources for foods and in store sources for beverages. Beverages from stores consistently decreased in all subpopulations. However, in adjusted models, reductions in CPG calories purchased in 2009-2012 were slower for NHB and low-income households than for NHW and high-income households, respectively. The decline in calories from name-brand food purchases was slower among NHB, Hispanic, and lowest-income households. NHW and high-income households had the highest absolute calories purchased in 2000. Conclusions: Across 2 large data sources, we found decreases in intake and purchases of beverages from stores across racial/ethnic and income groups. However, potentially beneficial reductions in calories purchased were more pronounced in some subgroups over others.Am J Clin Nutr 2016;104:750-9.

Trends in added sugars from packaged beverages available and purchased by US households, 2007–2012

“…Likewise, the households with the lowest incomes (,185% FPL) obtained significantly more added sugars in both absolute and relative terms than did households with incomes $400% FPL. These findings are consistent with earlier research that found calories from store-obtained beverages decreased in all subpopulations, but reductions in calories from packaged beverages purchased in 2009-2012 were slower in black and low-income households than in white and highincome households (28). Nonetheless, earlier work on packaged beverages has only been able to consider calories or total sugars, not added sugars specifically.…”

Understanding the Intersection of Race/Ethnicity, Socioeconomic Status, and Geographic Location: A Scoping Review of U.S. Consumer Food Purchasing

“…Thirty-four studies were included in this scoping review [ 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 ]. Information on customer purchasing assessment methodologies used across studies is shown in ( Table 1 ).…”

“…Fifteen studies (44.1%) examined purchasing outcomes across racial and/or ethnic groups [ 27 , 29 , 30 , 39 , 42 , 43 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 53 , 54 ]. All studies examined purchasing among NHW, 14 examined purchasing among NHB, 14 studied purchasing among Hispanic, nine examined purchasing among non-Hispanic Other (or a different author definition that collapsed multiple racial/ethnic groups), and three investigated purchasing among Asian (using the author definition).…”

“…Several reviewed studies ( n = 15, 44.1%) presented purchasing findings by race/ethnicity [ 27 , 29 , 30 , 39 , 42 , 43 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 53 , 54 ]. Despite the large number of studies conducted to date, inconsistencies exist.…”

“…Most studies included in this review ( n = 19, 55.9%) examined SES differences in consumer food and/or beverage purchases [ 26 , 27 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 36 , 37 , 39 , 42 , 43 , 45 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 54 ]. These findings underscore that identifying purchasing patterns by SES continues to be a major priority in the field; included studies generally showed a lower likelihood of fruit, vegetable, and whole grain purchases and a higher likelihood for discretionary product purchases (i.e., salty snacks, sweets, and SSB) among consumers with lower incomes compared to higher incomes [ 58 ].…”