Fruit and vegetable consumption among 12 to 17 year-olds in California.

摘要

The objectives of this study were to examine the effects of eating a school lunch and season on fruit and vegetable consumption among adolescents, and to compare the dietary recall methods of two surveys for measuring fruit and vegetable consumption among adolescents. In the spring of 1998, 1,213 randomly selected adolescents were administered the California Teen Eating, Exercising, and Nutrition Survey (Cal-TEENS), a telephone survey designed to ascertain fruit and vegetable consumption. The dietary recall component collected information on fruits and vegetables consumed during the previous day. A similar dietary recall component was added to the California Youth Tobacco Survey (CYTS). CYTS was completed for 2,323 adolescents from January to December of 1998. When CalTEENS was conducted again in 2000, a random sample of 72 respondents also was administered a previous-day dietary recall using the Nutritional Data System for Research (NDS-R). Results showed that Cal-TEENS respondents who ate a school lunch that offered fruits or vegetables reported higher consumption of fruits and vegetables on the previous day than all other respondents. Hispanics males 12 to 13 years-old who ate a school lunch that offered fruits or vegetables are predicted to eat the most fruits and vegetables. Those who ate a school lunch that offered fruits or vegetables also were more likely to eat five or more servings of fruits and vegetables on the previous day. In CYTS, lowest fruit and vegetable consumption was reported in the fall (September, October, and November) and highest fruit and vegetable consumption in the winter (December, January and February). Respondents in the winter also were most likely to consume five or more servings of fruits and vegetables. Paired t-test comparisons showed that respondents in the Cal-TEENS over-reported servings of fruits and juices, and under-reported servings of vegetables compared to the NDS-R. The results of this study will help researchers and nutrition education professionals develop and continue intervention and education programs that promote fruit and vegetable consumption to adolescents. These results also will help when designing future dietary surveys of adolescents.