Ty Beal1,2, Saul S Morris3, Alison Tumilowicz4. 1. Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition, Washington, DC, USA. 2. Department of Environmental Science and Policy, University of California, Davis, CA, USA. 3. Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition, London, UK. 4. Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition, Geneva, Switzerland.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Adolescence presents an opportunity to influence diet, which impacts present and future health outcomes, yet adolescent diets globally are poorly understood. OBJECTIVE: We generate evidence on adolescent diets globally and explore patterns and trends by subpopulation. METHODS: We estimated mean frequency of consumption and prevalence of less-than-daily fruit and vegetable consumption, at-least-daily carbonated beverage consumption, and at-least-weekly fast-food consumption among school-going adolescents aged primarily 12 to 17 years from the Global School-based Student Health Surveys in Africa, Asia, Oceania, and Latin America between 2008 and 2015. Random-effects meta-analysis was used to pool estimates globally and by subgroup. RESULTS: On average, adolescents consumed fruit 1.43 (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.26-1.60) times per day, vegetables 1.75 (1.58-1.92) times per day, carbonated soft drinks 0.99 (0.77-1.22) times per day, and fast food 1.05 (0.78-1.32) times per week. Overall, 34.5% (95% CI 29.4-39.7) consumed fruit less than once per day, 20.6% (15.8-25.9) consumed vegetables less than once per day, 42.8% (35.2-50.7) drank carbonated soft drinks at least once per day, and 46.1% (38.6-53.7) consumed fast food at least once per week. Mean daily frequency of fruit consumption was particularly low in South and East Asia (1.30 [1.02-1.58]); carbonated soft drink consumption high in Latin America (1.54 [1.31-1.78]), high-income countries (1.66 [1.29-2.03]), and modern food system typologies (1.44 [0.75-2.12]); and mean weekly fast food consumption high in mixed food system typologies (1.29 [0.88-1.71]). CONCLUSIONS: School-going adolescents infrequently consume fruits and vegetables and frequently consume carbonated soft drinks, but there is wide variability by subpopulation.
BACKGROUND: Adolescence presents an opportunity to influence diet, which impacts present and future health outcomes, yet adolescent diets globally are poorly understood. OBJECTIVE: We generate evidence on adolescent diets globally and explore patterns and trends by subpopulation. METHODS: We estimated mean frequency of consumption and prevalence of less-than-daily fruit and vegetable consumption, at-least-daily carbonated beverage consumption, and at-least-weekly fast-food consumption among school-going adolescents aged primarily 12 to 17 years from the Global School-based Student Health Surveys in Africa, Asia, Oceania, and Latin America between 2008 and 2015. Random-effects meta-analysis was used to pool estimates globally and by subgroup. RESULTS: On average, adolescents consumed fruit 1.43 (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.26-1.60) times per day, vegetables 1.75 (1.58-1.92) times per day, carbonated soft drinks 0.99 (0.77-1.22) times per day, and fast food 1.05 (0.78-1.32) times per week. Overall, 34.5% (95% CI 29.4-39.7) consumed fruit less than once per day, 20.6% (15.8-25.9) consumed vegetables less than once per day, 42.8% (35.2-50.7) drank carbonated soft drinks at least once per day, and 46.1% (38.6-53.7) consumed fast food at least once per week. Mean daily frequency of fruit consumption was particularly low in South and East Asia (1.30 [1.02-1.58]); carbonated soft drink consumption high in Latin America (1.54 [1.31-1.78]), high-income countries (1.66 [1.29-2.03]), and modern food system typologies (1.44 [0.75-2.12]); and mean weekly fast food consumption high in mixed food system typologies (1.29 [0.88-1.71]). CONCLUSIONS: School-going adolescents infrequently consume fruits and vegetables and frequently consume carbonated soft drinks, but there is wide variability by subpopulation.
Keywords:
GSHS; adolescents; carbonated soft drinks; children; dietary intake; fast foods; fruits and vegetables; nutrition; soda; youth
Authors: Jo-Anna B Baxter; Yaqub Wasan; Muhammad Islam; Simon Cousens; Sajid B Soofi; Imran Ahmed; Daniel W Sellen; Zulfiqar A Bhutta Journal: Matern Child Nutr Date: 2021-08-31 Impact factor: 3.092