Journal article

Publication year: 2015

Pages: 517-525

Journal: British Journal of Nutrition

Volume number: 113

Issue number: 3

ISSN: 0007-1145

DOI Link: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007114514003663

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Abstract: 
Exploring changes in children's diet over time and the relationship between these changes and socio-economic status (SES) may help to understand the impact of social inequalities on dietary patterns. The aim of the present study was to describe dietary patterns by applying a cluster analysis to 9301 children participating in the baseline (2-9 years old) and follow-up (4-11 years old) surveys of the Identification and Prevention of Dietary-and Lifestyle-induced Health Effects in Children and Infants Study, and to describe the cluster memberships of these children over time and their association with SES. We applied the K-means clustering algorithm based on the similarities between the relative frequencies of consumption of forty-two food items. The following three consistent clusters were obtained at baseline and follow-up: processed (higher frequency of consumption of snacks and fast food); sweet (higher frequency of consumption of sweet foods and sweetened drinks); healthy (higher frequency of consumption of fruits, vegetables and wholemeal products). Children with higher-educated mothers and fathers and the highest household income were more likely to be allocated to the healthy cluster at baseline and follow-up and less likely to be allocated to the sweet cluster. Migrants were more likely to be allocated to the processed cluster at baseline and follow-up. Applying the cluster analysis to derive dietary patterns at the two time points allowed us to identify groups of children from a lower socio-economic background presenting persistently unhealthier dietary profiles. This finding reflects the need for healthy eating interventions specifically targeting children from lower socio-economic backgrounds.

Harvard Citation style: Fernandez-Alvira, J., Börnhorst, C., Bammann, K., Gwozdz, W., Krogh, V., Hebestreit, A., et al. (2015) Prospective associations between socio-economic status and dietary patterns in European children: the Identification and Prevention of Dietary- and Lifestyle-induced Health Effects in Children and Infants (IDEFICS) Study, British Journal of Nutrition, 113(3), pp. 517-525. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007114514003663

APA Citation style: Fernandez-Alvira, J., Börnhorst, C., Bammann, K., Gwozdz, W., Krogh, V., Hebestreit, A., Barba, G., Reisch, L., Eiben, G., Iglesia, I., Veidebaum, T., Kourides, Y., Kovacs, E., Huybrechts, I., Pigeot, I., & Moreno, L. (2015). Prospective associations between socio-economic status and dietary patterns in European children: the Identification and Prevention of Dietary- and Lifestyle-induced Health Effects in Children and Infants (IDEFICS) Study. British Journal of Nutrition. 113(3), 517-525. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007114514003663