Unhealthy and Healthy Food Consumption Inside and Outside of the School by Pre-school and Elementary School Mexican Children in Tijuana, Mexico

Vargas, Lilian; Jiménez-Cruz, Arturo; Bacardı́-Gascón, Montserrat

doi:10.1007/s10900-013-9729-2

Cited by 15 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…One nationally representative study conducted in 2013 found that 41 % of 9–10-year-old children brought food from home to school, while 29 % purchased food at school, and 30 % did both (N Lopez-Olmedo, unpublished results). An additional study of eight public schools in Tijuana found that while virtually all pre-school children consumed foods prepared at home at school, this declined as children aged, whereas the purchase of unhealthy foods both inside and outside the school increased with age ( 23 ) . The same study found that whereas foods from home tended to be healthier, with fruits and vegetables among the most commonly brought-from-home items, foods purchased both in and outside the school comprised largely ‘fried foods, soft drinks, ice cream, yogurt high in sugar, pastries, cookies, processed soups and sweets’, as well as burgers, pizza, burritos and quesadillas.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The contribution of at-home and away-from-home food to dietary intake among 2–13-year-old Mexican children

Taillie

Afeiche

Eldridge

et al. 2016

Public Health Nutr.

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Objective: Away-from-home foods have been shown to have lower nutritional quality and larger portion sizes than many foods prepared at home. We aimed to describe energy and nutrient intakes among 2-13-year-old Mexican children by eating location (at home and away from home), overall, by socio-economic status (SES) and by urbanicity. Design: Dietary intake was collected via one 24 h recall in the 2012 Mexican National Health and Nutrition Survey (ENSANUT). Location was reported for each food consumed. Results were adjusted for sex, day of recall, region, weight status, SES and urbanicity. Setting: Mexico (nationally representative). Subjects: Children aged 2-5 years (n 1905) and 6-13 years (n 2868). Results: Children consumed the majority of daily energy at home (89 % of 2-5-year-olds; 82 % of 6-13-year-olds). The most common away-from-home eating location was school (22 % of 2-5-year-olds; 43 % of 6-13-year-olds), followed by the street (14 % of 2-5-year-olds; 13 % of 6-13-year-olds). The most common foods consumed away from home were wheat/rice and corn mixed dishes, sugar-sweetened beverages, pastries/candy/desserts, milk (2-5-year-olds only) and salty snacks (6-13-year-olds). Multivariate models showed that high-SES 2-5-year-olds consumed 14 % of daily energy away from home v. 8 % among low-SES 2-5-year-olds, and high-SES 6-13-year-olds consumed 21 % of daily energy away from home v. 14 % among low-SES 6-13 year-olds. There were no differences by urban residence. Conclusions: Among Mexican children, most foods and beverages were consumed at home. However, the percentage of foods consumed or purchased away from home increased with age and with SES. Keywords Eating location Energy intakeChild diet Fast food Latin AmericaOverweight and obesity are a major health concern in Mexico, with an estimated prevalence of 9 % among children of pre-school age (0-59 months)(1) and 35 % among schoolage children (5-11 years) (2) . Identifying dietary behaviours or environments that are linked to excess energy intake is a critical step in understanding where along the pathway policies or interventions can help prevent the continued rise of obesity. The away-from-home food environment is one potential area for improvement, as previous research has found that away-from-home food tends to have lower nutritional quality, including more energy, total fat and saturated fat, as well as less dietary fibre, vitamin C, Ca and Fe (3,4) . Larger portion sizes of away-from-home foods also contribute to increased energy intake (5)(6)(7)(8) .In the USA, away-from-home consumption accounts for 31 % of total energy among 2-5-year-olds and 36 % among 6-11-year-olds (9) . Recent research has also found that energy from stores, fast foods and school, all are comprised of about 32-35 % 'empty' calories from solid fats and added sugars (SoFAS) (10) . Little is known about away-from-home food and beverage intakes in Mexico and how this contributes to food group and total daily intakes. Quantifying the extent to which children consume daily e...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The contribution of at-home and away-from-home food to dietary intake among 2–13-year-old Mexican children

Taillie

Afeiche

Eldridge

et al. 2016

Public Health Nutr.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…Previous studies have documented that the majority of the foods in lunchboxes made at home do not meet the standards of a healthy diet [8][9][10][11].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Additionally, 91 % of the lunchboxes had foods with high contents of sugar, fat, and salt; only 8 % of the lunchboxes had water, fruits and/or vegetables [11]. Benjamin et al [18] performed an evaluation of the nutritional quality of the foods served at government financed daycare centers in Mexico and found that what was served met the minimum requirements from the food guide ''My Plate'' (USDA, 2008).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nutritional Intervention to Improve the Quality of Lunchboxes Among Mexican School Children

2016

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In Mexico, the type of foods included in the lunchboxes of school children are unhealthy. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of an intervention program to improve the quality of the foods in the lunchboxes. Two schools were randomly selected as the intervention group (IG) and two more as the control group (CG). The evaluation was performed by comparing a food list from 3 days before and 6 months after the intervention. The components of the intervention included: exposure to posters inside and outside the classrooms and the distribution of pamphlets to parents, the pamphlets provided recipes and information about healthy foods. A lunchbox was considered adequate (AL) if it had less than 276 cal, fruits or vegetables, and an item prepared at home; a healthy lunchbox (HL) consisted of fruits or vegetables, water, and it did not have unhealthy foods. At the beginning of the study there were no significant differences in the compliance of AL and HL in both groups. By the end of the study, 19 % of the children in the IG and 10 % of the children in the CG met the criteria of a HL (p = 0.002). The results of this study demonstrate that a simple, 6 month intervention targeting parents improved the quality of the foods in the lunchboxes of second and sixth graders.

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“…Moreover, food consumption in urban Mexico is not always close to the healthy guidelines. A study examining both child-brought and school-served lunches and snacks in Tijuana, Mexico found the overwhelming majority of foods to be unhealthy, containing foods with high fat, sugar and salt content and low in fruits and vegetables (Vargas, Jiménez-Cruz, & Bacardí-Gascón, 2013). …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rural Latino caregivers' beliefs and behaviors around their children's salt consumption

et al. 2015

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Background Prevalence of high blood pressure has been increasing in U.S. children, with implications for long term health consequences. Sodium consumption, a modifiable risk factor for high blood pressure, is above recommended limits and increasing. Very little is known about Latino caregiver beliefs and behaviors around their children’s salt consumption. Methods In California’s Central Valley, qualitative interviews in Spanish investigated low-income caregivers’ views and understandings of their children’s dietary salt consumption. Thirty individual interviews and 5 focus groups were conducted (N=61). Interview transcripts were translated and transcribed, coded and thematically analyzed. Results Seven primary topic areas around children’s salt intake and its impact on health were identified: children’s favorite foods, children’s dietary salt sources, superiority of home-cooked foods, salty and sweet foods, managing salt for health, developing children’s tastes, and adding salt added at the table. Parents recognize common sources of sodium such as “junk food” and processed food and made efforts to limit their children’s consumption of these foods, but may overlook other significant sodium sources, particularly bread, cheese, prepared soups and sports drinks. Caregivers recognize excess salt as unhealthy for children, but don’t believe health problems (like high blood pressure) can occur in young children. Nevertheless, they made efforts to limit how much salt their children consumed through a variety of strategies; school meals were a source of high sodium that they felt were outside of their control. Conclusion Latino caregivers are concerned about their children’s salt intake and attempt to limit consumption, but some common sources of sodium are under-recognized.

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Unhealthy and Healthy Food Consumption Inside and Outside of the School by Pre-school and Elementary School Mexican Children in Tijuana, Mexico

Cited by 15 publications

References 16 publications

The contribution of at-home and away-from-home food to dietary intake among 2–13-year-old Mexican children

The contribution of at-home and away-from-home food to dietary intake among 2–13-year-old Mexican children

Nutritional Intervention to Improve the Quality of Lunchboxes Among Mexican School Children

Rural Latino caregivers' beliefs and behaviors around their children's salt consumption

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