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Food Environments and Adolescent Health

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A special issue of Nutrients (ISSN 2072-6643). This special issue belongs to the section "Nutrition and Public Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2020) | Viewed by 18984

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Special Issue Editor

Dr. Colette Kelly

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Guest Editor

Health Promotion Research Centre, National University of Ireland Galway, Galway, Ireland
Interests: nutrition; adolescents; food environments; participative research

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Adolescence is a rapid developmental stage when physical, social and cognitive development co-occur. Dietary and other health behaviours initiated and established during adolescence have impacts on immediate and future health outcomes. The contexts and settings in which adolescents live, learn and socialize influence food availability, accessibility, affordability and ultimately impact adolescent dietary habits. Adolescents are increasingly aware of the effect of dietary choices on planetary health, and their future food choices may be more influenced by environmental/sustainability goals than personal health outcomes. This Issue is interested in diet during the adolescent period (10–19 years), the influence of food environments (e.g., home, school, community) on adolescent health and exploratory research on adolescent diets and planetary health.

This Special Issue of Nutrients, entitled "Food Environments and Adolescent Health", welcomes the submission of original research, systematic reviews and meta-analyses.

Dr. Colette Kelly
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

Adolescence
Food environments
Diet
Planetary health
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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

11 pages, 712 KiB

Open AccessArticle

‘It’s Hard to Make Good Choices and It Costs More’: Adolescents’ Perception of the External School Food Environment

by Colette Kelly, Mary Callaghan and Saoirse Nic Gabhainn

Nutrients 2021, 13(4), 1043; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13041043 - 24 Mar 2021

Cited by 16 | Viewed by 4152

Abstract

Research on the impact of school and community food environments on adolescent food choice is heavily reliant on objective rather than subjective measures of food outlets around schools and homes. Gaining the perspective of adolescents and how they perceive and use food environments is needed. The aim of this study was to explore adolescent’s perception and use of the food environment surrounding their schools. Purposive sampling was used to recruit schools. Mapping exercises and discussion groups were facilitated with 95 adolescents from six schools. Thematic analysis showed that adolescents are not loyal to particular shops but are attracted to outlets with price discounts, those with ‘deli’ counters and sweets. Cost, convenience and choice are key factors influencing preference for food outlets and foods. Quality, variety and health were important factors for adolescents but these features, especially affordable healthy food, were hard to find. Social factors such as spending time with friends is also an important feature of food environments that deserves further attention. Adolescents’ perceptions of their food environment provide insights into features that can be manipulated to enable healthy choices. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Environments and Adolescent Health)

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15 pages, 284 KiB

Open AccessArticle

by Vassiliki Benetou, Afroditi Kanellopoulou, Eleftheria Kanavou, Anastasios Fotiou, Myrto Stavrou, Clive Richardson, Philippos Orfanos and Anna Kokkevi

Nutrients 2020, 12(12), 3804; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12123804 - 11 Dec 2020

Cited by 13 | Viewed by 3268

Abstract

Prevalence of diet-related behaviors (i.e., breakfast consumption, eating with the family) and their association with a 17-point diet quality score, constructed on the basis of reported frequency (in days/week) of vegetable, fruit, sweets and sugar-sweetened beverages consumption, was investigated among 3525 adolescents (51.5% girls) aged 11, 13 and 15 years, who were participants in the Greek arm of the international Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children (HBSC) cross-sectional study, during 2018. Almost one-third (32.9%) of the sample had breakfast ≤1 day/weekdays, 20.2% rarely ate with the family, 26.1% had a meal while watching TV ≥5 days/week, 31.7% had a snack in front of a screen ≥5 days/week and 24.1% ate in fast-food restaurants at least once/week. Multivariable ordinal logistic regression revealed that eating breakfast ≤1 day/weekdays compared to 4–5 days/weekdays (Odds ratio (OR): 1.56, 95% con-fidence interval (CI): 1.34–1.82), eating rarely with the family compared to almost every day (OR: 1.35, 95% CI: 1.13–1.60) and eating in fast-food restaurants ≥2 times/week vs. rarely (OR: 4.59, 95% CI: 3.14–6.70) were associated with higher odds of having poor diet quality. High frequency of having meals/snacks in front of a screen/TV was also associated with poor diet quality. Efforts to prevent or modify these behaviors during adolescence may contribute to healthier diet. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Environments and Adolescent Health)

13 pages, 258 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Participatory Approaches to Understand Dietary Behaviours of Adolescents in the Secondary School Setting

by Sarah Browne, Carol Barron, Anthony Staines and Mary Rose Sweeney

Nutrients 2020, 12(12), 3761; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12123761 - 07 Dec 2020

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2266

Abstract

Acknowledgement of wider socio-ecological factors that influence dietary behaviours needs greater consideration in nutrition research with young people. Additionally, children and adolescents have a right to have their voices heard in research that concerns them. The aim of this methods paper is to describe and evaluate participatory methodologies undertaken as part of a dietary behaviour study with adolescents in the school setting in Ireland. Photovoice and peer-led focus groups were the key participatory methodologies, undertaken alongside food diaries and anthropometry. These methodologies were evaluated through discussion with peer researchers, qualitative surveys and in the context of the wider study process and outcomes. Peer researchers reported learning new skills including research, facilitation, listening and social skills and many felt they gained confidence, as well as an awareness about healthy and unhealthy practices at school. The findings were found to be authentic according to students, except for two limitations. Students believed body image was not adequately represented in the findings, and alternative focus group compositions could have influenced discussion content. Youth participants were afforded genuine opportunities to have their voices heard as part of a diet and nutrition research and the methodologies were acceptable and enjoyable. They demonstrated agency in valuable contributions at project design, data collection, analysis and interpretation stages of the research process. Furthermore, the participatory methodologies complemented quantitative data by providing environmental, behavioural, and socio-cultural insights into food choice in the school setting. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Environments and Adolescent Health)

9 pages, 234 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Dietary Factors and Tinnitus among Adolescents

by Milena Tomanic, Goran Belojevic, Ana Jovanovic, Nadja Vasiljevic, Dragana Davidovic and Katarina Maksimovic

Nutrients 2020, 12(11), 3291; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12113291 - 27 Oct 2020

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3495

Abstract

The number of people suffering from constant tinnitus is ever-increasing and has spread to all age groups, including adolescents. The etiology of tinnitus is multifactorial, but dietary factors have been rarely investigated. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between dietary factors and constant tinnitus among adolescents from an urban environment. A population-oriented cross-sectional study was carried out during the 2019/2020 school year in 12 Belgrade secondary schools. There were 1287 school children aged from 15 to 19 years who participated in the study. There were 1003 respondents who completed a questionnaire on tinnitus (response rate 77.9%; 31% male). We used the standardized Tinnitus Screener questionnaire and a food frequency questionnaire specially designed for this study and adapted to Serbian adolescents. A logistic regression analysis revealed a strong negative correlation between fresh vegetables and fruits and tinnitus presence. On the other hand, the risk of constant tinnitus increased with the increased intake of white bread, carbonated beverages, and fast food. In conclusion, we show that fresh fruit and vegetable intakes may be negatively related to tinnitus frequency, while sweetened sodas, fast food, and white bread may raise the odds for tinnitus. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Environments and Adolescent Health)

15 pages, 1105 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Quality of Breakfast and Healthy Diet in School-aged Adolescents and Their Association with BMI, Weight Loss Diets and the Practice of Physical Activity

by Raquel M. Guevara, José D. Urchaga, Antonio S. Cabaco and José E. Moral-García

Nutrients 2020, 12(8), 2294; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12082294 - 30 Jul 2020

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 5239

Abstract

Dietary habits are an important factor in the protection of adolescent health. The quality and frequency of breakfast and the various food groups can affect the wellbeing of this population group in both the short and long term. Research indicates that there is a range of relevant variables in the study of diet at this stage: following a weight loss diet, body mass index and the practice of physical exercise, amongst others. In this paper, all three variables are analysed, together with others of a demographic nature (sex and age). This is a descriptive cross-sectional survey that was carried out on 1318 adolescents aged 11 to 18. The Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children (HBSC) international study questionnaire, sponsored by the World Health Organisation, was used. In general terms, the data revealed that the majority of adolescents do not have adequate eating patterns. The quality and frequency of breakfast and the consumption of food types are associated with almost all the variables under study; additionally, there are significant differences by sex and school year. Finally, proposals are made to prevent eating disorders, which are appearing at an increasingly young age. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Environments and Adolescent Health)

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