Growing concern about ideal body image among adolescent girls in developing countries has led them to follow dietary modifications. In general, the ideal body image is perceived as a ‘thin body’ and now tagged with the concept of being physically fit. The present study evaluates the prevalence of weight concerns, and subsequent eating behaviour modifications among a group of adolescent girls in Sikkim.

Pre-tested FFQ and dietary behaviour questionnaire were canvassed through direct interviews. Anthropometric measurements were taken following standard techniques. In the present study, dieting stands for skipping meals or avoiding certain food items.

Sikkim, India.

A total of 577 girls were selected from several blocks of all four districts of Sikkim.

The results of the study show that concern with weight reduction is growing among adolescent girls, particularly among urban girls of affluent families. Girls from families with a higher economic status are about two times more likely to report dissatisfaction with their body weight (OR = 1·96; P ≤ 0·05) and these girls are five times more likely to report the need for dieting.

It is evident that weight concern and dissatisfaction over body weight are growing among adolescents. It can be safely argued that eating disorder, once a problem of the Western world, is now slowly creeping in among adolescents of the developing world as a consequence of rapid lifestyle changes over the past few decades.

The present study aimed to evaluate the knowledge and practices of public-sector primary-care health professionals and final-year students regarding the role of nutrition, physical activity and smoking cessation (lifestyle modification) in the management of chronic diseases of lifestyle within the public health-care sector.

A comparative cross-sectional descriptive quantitative study was conducted in thirty primary health-care facilities and four tertiary institutions offering medical and/or nursing programmes in Cape Town in the Western Cape Metropole. Stratified random sampling, based on geographical location, was used to select the health facilities while convenience sampling was used to select students at the tertiary institutions. A validated self-administered knowledge test was used to obtain data from the health professionals.

Differential lifestyle modification knowledge exists among both health professionals and students, with less than 10 % achieving the desired scores of 80 % or higher. The majority of health professionals seem to be promoting the theoretical concepts of lifestyle modification but experience difficulty in providing practical advice to patients. Of the health professionals evaluated, doctors appeared to have the best knowledge of lifestyle modification. Lack of time, lack of patient adherence and language barriers were given as the main barriers to providing lifestyle counselling.

The undergraduate curricula of medical and nursing students should include sufficient training on lifestyle modification, particularly practical advice on diet, physical activity and smoking cessation. Health professionals working at primary health-care facilities should be updated by providing lifestyle modification education as part of continuing medical education.

In many studies it has been shown that breakfast is associated with normal weight in children and adolescents. Other meals, family meals and a regular meal pattern have been less studied. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to examine whether a regular meal pattern, or breakfast, lunch or dinner as separate regular meals, is associated with the BMI of children.

A cross-sectional study conducted within the Helsinki region during 2006. Study participants were measured and weighed by research staff. Children filled in a study questionnaire on their health behaviour, including the frequency of consuming meals. A regular meal was defined as one usually eaten on every school day. A regular meal pattern was defined as one consisting of a usual consumption of breakfast, school lunch and dinner on every school day. Covariance analysis was used as the statistical analysis method.

Capital region, Finland, 2006.

A total of 604 schoolchildren (312 girls) aged 9–11 years.

Irregular breakfast and an irregular meal pattern were associated with higher BMI. Regularity of school lunch, dinner or family dinner was not associated with BMI.

A regular breakfast and meal pattern was associated with lower BMI in children, although breakfast was the only single meal associated with BMI. We conclude that, although the association between breakfast and weight status in children is fairly consistent, the role of other meals is less convincing.

The Nordic countries have published joint dietary recommendations, the Nordic Nutrition Recommendations (NNR), since 1980. We evaluated adherence to the NNR as a measure of a healthy diet and its potential association with self-reported upper respiratory tract infection (URTI).

A prospective, population-based study with a follow-up period of 4 months. Dietary intake was assessed using a semi-quantitative FFQ with ninety-six items, along with other lifestyle factors, at baseline. URTI was assessed every three weeks. A Poisson regression model was used to control for age, sex and other confounding factors.

A middle-sized county in northern Sweden.

Swedish men and women (n 1509) aged 20–60 years.

The NNR include recommendations on macronutrient proportions, physical activity and intake of micronutrients, sodium, fibre and alcohol. We found that overall adherence to the NNR was moderately good. In addition, we found that high adherence to the NNR (>5·5 adherence points) was not associated with a lower risk of URTI (incidence rate ratio (IRR) 0·89, 95 % CI 0·73, 1·08) compared with low adherence (<4·5 adherence points). When investigating individual components of the NNR, only high physical activity was associated with lower URTI risk (IRR = 0·82, 95 % CI 0·69, 0·97) whereas none of the dietary components were associated with risk of URTI.

Overall adherence to the NNR was moderately good. Overall adherence to the NNR was not associated with URTI risk in our study. However, when investigating individual components of the NNR, we found that high physical activity was associated with lower URTI risk.

To investigate whether exposure to fast-food outlets and supermarkets is socio-economically patterned in the city of Copenhagen.

The study was based on a cross-sectional multivariate approach to examine the association between the number of fast-food outlets and supermarkets and neighbourhood-level socio-economic indicators. Food business addresses were obtained from commercial and public business locators and geocoded using a geographic information system for all neighbourhoods in the city of Copenhagen (n 400). The regression of counts of fast-food outlets and supermarkets v. indicators of socio-economic status (percentage of recent immigrants, percentage without a high-school diploma, percentage of the population under 35 years of age and average household income in Euros) was performed using negative binomial analysis.

Copenhagen, Denmark.

The unit of analysis was neighbourhood (n 400).

In the fully adjusted models, income was not a significant predictor for supermarket exposure. However, neighbourhoods with low and mid-low income were associated with significantly fewer fast-food outlets. Using backwise deletion from the fully adjusted models, low income remained significantly associated with fast-food outlet exposure (rate ratio = 0·66–0·80) in the final model.

In the city of Copenhagen, there was no evidence of spatial patterning of supermarkets by income. However, we detected a trend in the exposure to fast-food outlets, such that neighbourhoods in the lowest income quartile had fewer fast-food outlets than higher-income neighbourhoods. These findings have similarities with studies conducted in the UK, but not in the USA. The results suggest there may be socio-economic factors other than income associated with food exposure in Europe.

We evaluated the association between serum ferritin (s-ferritin), transferrin saturation and dietary patterns, in connection with ethnicity, geographical settlement and lifestyle factors.

In 2003–2004, a cross-sectional study of health and living conditions was carried out in northern Norway.

A questionnaire explored, among other factors, ethnicity and food consumption habits. Principal component analysis was used to assess the association between variables. Seven principal components were then used as input to a cluster analysis. To characterise food consumptions, five dietary patterns were identified and used to assess the effect of food consumption habits on Fe stores.

A total of 16 323 men and women between the ages of 36 and 79 years participated.

Participants who frequently consumed reindeer meat had higher levels of s-ferritin (P < 0·0001) than did individuals with other dietary patterns. This pattern was highly represented by subjects with three generations of Sami language (Sami I). Further, mean transferrin saturation in the reindeer group was higher compared with the other dietary clusters for men (P < 0·04) and women (P < 0·02). However, the reindeer pattern individuals also had the highest proportion of subjects with overweight and obesity. Obesity was positively associated with s-ferritin in both men and women (P < 0·0001).

The differences in Fe status described earlier between inland Sami and non-Sami can be explained by several factors such as food habits, age and obesity. High level of s-ferritin may reflect high intake of reindeer meat. Being overweight and obese is also associated with s-ferritin levels.

To determine whether prenatal vitamin A and/or Zn supplementation affects postnatal growth.

Follow-up of a randomized controlled trial monitoring growth in children from birth up to 24 months of age.

Central Java, Indonesia.

Children (n 343) of mothers participating in a double-blinded, randomized controlled study of vitamin A and/or Zn supplementation during pregnancy. We report the effects of prenatal supplementation on infant growth, measured as weight-for-age Z-scores (WAZ), height-for-age Z-scores (HAZ) and weight-for-height Z-scores (WHZ ), from 0 to 24 months, as well as differences in growth faltering among the supplementation groups.

For HAZ, the absolute differences between the vitamin A-only and vitamin A + Zn groups at 3 and 9 months were 0·34 sd and 0·37 sd, respectively, and the absolute difference between the vitamin A-only and Zn-only groups at 18 months was 0·31 sd. Compared with placebo, none of the supplements affected growth. Defining growth faltering as a downward crossing of two or more major percentile lines, 50–75 % of the children were found to be growth faltering within 9 months of age, whereas 17 % and 8 % scored <−2 sd for WAZ and HAZ, respectively. Prenatal supplementation did not reduce the prevalence of growth faltering.

Prenatal vitamin A supplementation had a small but significant effect on postnatal growth of children's length until 18 months of age compared with supplementation with either vitamin A + Zn or Zn alone, but not compared with placebo. It had no effects on other anthropometric measures and did not reduce the prevalence of growth faltering. Future studies should duplicate these findings before recommendations can be made.

To assess and develop consensus among a European panel of public health nutrition stakeholders regarding the competencies required for effective public health nutrition practice and the level of proficiency required in different practice contexts.

A modified Delphi study involving three rounds of questionnaires.

European Union.

Public health nutrition workforce development stakeholders, including academics, practitioners and employers, from twenty European countries.

A total of fifty-two expert panellists (84 % of an initial panel of sixty-two Delphi participants) completed all three rounds of the Delphi study. The panellists rated the importance of fifty-seven competency units possibly required of a public health nutritionist to effectively practice (Essential competencies). Twenty-nine of the fifty-seven competency units (51 %) met the consensus criteria (≥66·7 % agreement) at the second round of the Delphi survey, with the highest agreement for competencies clustered within the Nutrition science, Professional, Analytical and Public health services competency domains. Ratings of the level of competencies required for different levels in the workforce indicated that for a public health nutrition specialist, advanced-level competency was required across almost all the twenty-nine competencies rated as essential. There were limited differences in rating responses between academics and employer panellists throughout the Delphi study.

Competencies identified as essential can be used to review current public health nutrition practices and provide the basis for curriculum design and re-development, continuing education and workforce quality assurance systems in Europe. These are all important tools for systematic and strategic workforce development.

A systematic literature review was conducted to determine whether sweetened beverage intake increases the risk for obesity, and the extent to which it has contributed to recent increases in energy intake and adiposity in the USA.

The search included studies published between 1970 and 2010 that examined secular trends, mechanisms, observational associations and intervention outcomes. Observational and intervention studies were abstracted and systematically evaluated for quality.

Trends in obesity prevalence in the USA and studies from industrialized (developed) countries were included.

Studies were included for all ages, genders, ethnic and socio-economic groups for which data were available.

Obesity rates and sweetened beverage intake have increased in tandem in the USA. Studies consistently show that higher intake of sweetened beverages is associated with higher energy intake. Energy in liquid form is not well compensated for by reductions in the intake of other sources of energy. Well-designed observational studies consistently show a significant positive relationship between sweetened beverage intake and adiposity. More importantly, several well-conducted randomized controlled trials have shown statistically significant changes in adiposity as a result of corresponding changes in sweetened beverage intake.

All lines of evidence consistently support the conclusion that the consumption of sweetened beverages has contributed to the obesity epidemic. It is estimated that sweetened beverages account for at least one-fifth of the weight gained between 1977 and 2007 in the US population. Actions that are successful in reducing sweetened beverage consumption are likely to have a measurable impact on obesity.

The aim of the present study was to assess the concurrent and construct validity of two diet-quality indices, a modified Mediterranean diet score (mMDS) and a Mediterranean-like diet score (MLDS) additionally incorporating unhealthy food choices, as determined by an FFQ.

A validation study assessing FFQ intake estimates compared with ten or more unannounced 24 h recalls. Pearson's correlation coefficients, intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC), Bland–Altman plots and the limits of agreement method were used to assess the between-method agreement of scores. Construct validity was shown using associations between nutrient intakes derived from multiple 24 h recalls and the mMDS and MLDS derived from the FFQ.

Gerona, Spain.

A total of 107 consecutively selected participants from a population-based cross-sectional survey.

Pearson's correlations for the energy-adjusted mMDS and MLDS compared with multiple recalls were 0·48 and 0·62, respectively. The average FFQ energy-adjusted mMDS and MLDS were 102 % and 98 % of the recall-based mMDS and MLDS estimates, respectively. The FFQ under- and overestimated dietary recall estimates of the energy-adjusted MLDS by 28 % and 25 %, respectively, with slightly wider boundaries for the mMDS (31 % and 34 %). The ICC, which assesses absolute agreement, was similar to Pearson's correlations (mMDS = 0·48 and MLDS = 0·61). The mean differences between methods were similar across the range of average ratings for both scores, indicating the absence of bias. The FFQ-derived mMDS and MLDS correlated in the anticipated directions with intakes of eleven (73·3 %) and thirteen of fifteen nutrients (86·7 %), respectively.

The FFQ provides valid estimates of diet quality as assessed by the mMDS and MLDS.

To assess the dependence on fish consumption of families and its impact on nutritional status and neurodevelopment of pre-school children.

Cross-sectional study that measured children’s hair mercury (HHg) as an indicator of family fish consumption, growth (anthropometric Z-scores, WHO standards) and neurological (Gesell developmental scores (GDS)) development.

Traditional living conditions among families residing in the area adjacent to the Samuel Dam (Western Amazon) hydroelectric reservoir.

Two hundred and forty-nine pre-school children (1–59 months of age) from families transitioning from the traditional Amazonian lifestyle.

Family fish consumption was significantly correlated with children’s HHg concentration (Spearman’s r = 0·246, P < 0·0001); however, HHg had no significant association with growth (Z-scores). Overall, the prevalence of severe malnutrition, i.e. stunting (height-for-age Z-score (HAZ) ≤ −3), underweight (weight-for-age Z-score (WAZ) ≤ −3) and wasting (weight-for-height Z-score (WHZ) ≤ −3) was 5·2 % (n 13), 0 % and 0·8 % (n 2), respectively. The prevalence of moderate stunting (HAZ ≥ −3 to ≤ −2), underweight (WAZ ≥ −3 to ≤ −2) and wasting (WHZ ≥ −3 to ≤ −2) was 8·8 % (n 22), 2·4 % (n 6) and 4·8 % (n 12), respectively. Although 76 % of the children showed adequate GDS (>85), multiple regression analysis showed that fish consumption (as HHg) had no impact on GDS, but that some variables did interact significantly with specific domains (motor and language development).

The study showed that the families’ shift in fish consumption had no negative impact on the growth of young children and that ensuing methylmercury exposure has not been a noticeable neurodevelopmental hindrance.

To assess the effectiveness (extent to which an intervention works in daily medical practice) of the use of phytosterol/phytostanol-enriched margarines to lower total and non-HDL cholesterol levels in users and non-users of statins.

Retrospective cohort study.

Data were obtained from questionnaires on health and food intake from a population-based longitudinal cohort linked to pharmacy-dispensing records.

The analysis included 3829 men and women (aged 31–71 years) who were examined during 1998–2002 and re-examined at 5-year follow-up during 2003–2007.

Recommended doses of margarines were consumed by only 9 % of the subjects. Serum total cholesterol decreased by respectively −0·16 (95 % CI −0·26, −0·05) mmol/l, −1·40 (95 % CI −1·51, −1·30) mmol/l and −1·64 (95 % CI −1·91, −1·37) mmol/l in subjects who started to use phytosterols/phytostanols only, statins only or a combination of both compounds at some point in time between examination and re-examination, compared with subjects who did not start using phytosterols/phytostanols or statins. Cholesterol-lowering effects of the phytosterols/phytostanols were similar in statin users and statin non-users and increased with increasing intake of enriched margarine (no intake, 0; low intake, −0·017 (95 % CI −0·16, 0·13) mmol/l; medium intake, −0·089 (95 % CI −0·22, 0·038) mmol/l; high intake, −0·32 (95 % CI −0·50, −0·14) mmol/l).

Although recommended intake levels of the enriched margarines were not reached by all persons, these data show that under customary conditions of use phytosterols/phytostanols are effective in lowering cholesterol levels in both statin users and non-users.

The increasing prevalence of obesity worldwide is a major health concern. Our study, which is part of the First National Epidemiological Study of Obesity in Greece, aimed to assess (i) breakfast habits and their relationship to BMI in Greek adolescents, as well as (ii) breakfast skipping in relation to other health behaviours.

Epidemiological survey throughout Greece. Participants completed a questionnaire concerning breakfast habits and many lifestyle parameters.

The survey was conducted in schools throughout Greece.

Anthropometric measurements were performed on 6500 boys and 7778 girls, aged 13–19 years, from schools throughout Greece.

Among both boys and girls, breakfast consumers had a lower BMI than breakfast skippers. Moreover, breakfast skippers among both boys and girls were found to smoke more than breakfast consumers. The proportion of boys and girls who ate breakfast was found to be greater among those who had never been on a diet than among those who had already experienced dieting. Leisure-time activity was greater in breakfast consumers than breakfast skippers; among boys, 71·8 % of breakfast consumers walked compared with 66·4 % of breakfast skippers, whereas 38·4 % and 35·0 %, respectively, exercised. Among girls, these percentages were 73·1 % v. 68·7 % for walking and 36·7 % v. 31·5 % for exercising.

We found that breakfast skipping can be part of a constellation of several unhealthy lifestyle parameters and is related to higher BMI in Greek adolescents.

To develop and evaluate a method for calculating the Healthy Eating Index-2005 (HEI-2005) with the widely used Nutrition Data System for Research (NDSR) based on the method developed for use with the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food and Nutrient Dietary Data System (FNDDS) and MyPyramid Equivalents Database (MPED).

Cross-sectional.

Non-institutionalized, community-dwelling adults aged 70 years and above.

Two hundred and seventy-one adults participating in the Geisinger Rural Aging Study (GRAS) and 620 age- and race-matched adults from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2001–2002 (NHANES) were included in the analysis. The HEI-2005 scores were generated using NDSR in GRAS and compared to scores generated using FNDDS and MPED in NHANES.

Similar total HEI-2005 scores (mean 62·0 (se 0·75) in GRAS v. 57·4 (se 0·55) in NHANES) were estimated, and the individual components most strongly correlated with total score in both samples were compared. Cronbach’s coefficient α values of HEI-2005 were 0·52 in GRAS and 0·43 in NHANES.

Since NDSR is commonly used for educational purposes, in clinical settings and in nutrition research, it is important to develop methodology for assessing diet quality through the use of HEI-2005 with this dietary analysis software application and its accompanying food and nutrient database. Results from the present study show that HEI-2005 scores can be generated with NDSR using the method described in the present study and the detailed USDA Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion technical report as guidance.

To test the hypothesis that diets with high glycaemic index (GI) and glycaemic load (GL) increase the risk of heart disease.

Overall GI and GL were assessed from 7 d diet records or diet history interviews.

Information on hospitalization and death due to CVD and CHD was obtained from the National Register of Cause of Death and the National Register of Patients.

In total 3959 adult Danes were – depending on time of entry – followed for 6–25 years until 31 December 1999.

Overall GI was inversely associated with heart disease in men. The hazard ratios (95 % CI) for the 10th and 90th GI percentiles compared with the median were 1·38 (1·13, 1·68) and 0·90 (0·76, 1·07) for CVD morbidity, 1·45 (1·05, 1·99) and 0·81 (0·62, 1·06) for CVD mortality, and 1·31 (0·97, 1·76) and 0·65 (0·51, 0·84) for CHD morbidity. In male subjects GL was not associated with either outcome. In women no clear association between overall GI and heart disease was found, whereas positive non-linear associations were found for GL: at very high levels of GL, increase in GL was associated with increasing CVD and CHD morbidity.

In men low-GI diets were associated increased risk of heart disease and GL was not associated with heart disease. In women there was no clear association between GI and heart disease, but to some extent a positive association between GL and heart disease was observed as hypothesized.

To identify predictors of increasing waist circumference (WC) over a 5-year period in a contemporary population of Australian adults.

Longitudinal national cohort of adults participating in the Australian Diabetes, Obesity and Lifestyle Study (AusDiab).

Australian adults in 2000 and 2005.

A total of 2521 men and 2726 women aged ≥25 years at baseline who participated in AusDiab and provided anthropometric measurements at baseline (1999–2000) and follow-up (2005).

A ≥5 % increase of baseline WC occurred in 27 % of men and 38 % of women over the 5-year period. In the multivariate analysis of the total population, there was a higher risk of ≥5 % gain in baseline WC in women, younger people, people with a lower baseline WC, people who never married compared with married/de facto, current smokers compared with never smokers, people with a poorer diet quality and people with a low energy intake. However, there was no significant association with many expected predictors of waist gain such as physical activity. There were some associations between other lifestyle factors and change of WC by sex, age, level of education and across WC categories, but the associations differed across these groups.

A ≥5 % increase of baseline WC occurred in a significant proportion of men and women over the 5-year period. Of the behavioural factors, poor diet quality was the key predictor of the ≥5 % increase of baseline WC in this cohort. The findings highlight the need to understand better the causal role of lifestyle in regard to increasing WC over time.

To examine how factors related to the home food environment and individual characteristics are associated with healthy food purchasing among low-income African American (AA) youth.

A total of 206 AA youth (ninety-one boys and 115 girls), aged 10–14 years, and their primary adult caregivers.

Fourteen Baltimore recreation centres in low-income neighbourhoods.

Cross-sectional study. We collected information about food purchasing, the home food environment, sociodemographic and psychosocial factors drawn from social cognitive theory. Multivariable logistic regression was used to examine the factors associated with the frequency and proportion of healthy food purchases in all youth and stratified by gender. Low-fat or low-sugar foods were defined as healthy.

Youth purchased an average of 1·5 healthy foods (range = 0–15) in the week before the interview, comprising an average of 11·6 % (range = 0–80 %) of total food purchases. The most commonly purchased healthy foods included water and sunflower seeds/nuts. Healthier food-related behavioural intentions were associated with a higher frequency of healthy foods purchased (OR = 1·4, P < 0·05), which was stronger in girls (OR = 1·9, P < 0·01). Greater caregiver self-efficacy for healthy food purchasing/preparation was associated with increased frequency of healthy purchasing among girls (OR = 1·3, P < 0·05). Among girls, more frequent food preparation by a family member (OR = 6·6, P < 0·01) was associated with purchasing a higher proportion of healthy foods. No significant associations were observed for boys.

Interventions focused on AA girls should emphasize increasing food-related behavioural intentions. For girls, associations between caregiver self-efficacy and home food preparation suggest the importance of the caregiver in healthy food purchasing.

To test the impact of training for educators on the health of children enrolled in public and philanthropic day-care nurseries.

A randomised, institutional, non-blind clinical trial was conducted. An educational intervention was performed in four day-care centres and the control group consisted of four other day-care centres. Interviews with the mothers, collection of blood from the children by digital puncture and anthropometry were performed. The chosen indicator for the improvement of health was anaemia (Hb <11 g/dl). An unconditional logistic regression model was set for the risk factors for anaemia, considering associations with P ≤ 0·05 as statistically significant.

Eight day-care centres in the city of Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Two hundred and fifty-two children from day-care nurseries.

The children from the day-care centres that were not subject to intervention presented a 2·11 times greater risk (95% CI 1·04, 4·30; P = 0·40) of having anaemia at the end of the study independent of the control variables (sex, age, time in the day-care centre, anaemia at the beginning of the study, maternal age, use of oral iron supplements, number of siblings, per capita family income, use of antibiotics and the necessity of avoidable hospitalisations) used in the construction of the final logistical model.

The assessed educational intervention promoted significant changes in the health status of the children, reinforcing the importance of training for professionals who care for young children in day-care centres in developing countries in order to promote child health.

To describe fruit and vegetable intake of pre-school and school children in the Czech Republic and to provide information about their preferences and dietary habits.

Cross-sectional dietary survey conducted by the method of repeated 24 h recall on two non-consecutive days. Usual intakes were calculated for three age categories (4–6, 7–10 and 11–14 years).

The whole area of the Czech Republic.

A subgroup of 602 children aged 4–14 years was extracted from the representative sample of respondents participating in a national dietary survey (SISP) realized in the years 2003 and 2004.

Estimated average usual intakes of fruit and vegetables were 209 (sd 69) g/d in children aged 4–6 years, 230 (sd 84) g/d in children aged 7–10 years, and 284 (sd 133) g/d and 261 (sd 140) g/d respectively in boys and girls aged 11–14 years. Only 22 % of children had total daily intake of fruit and vegetables of five or more servings on the day of the survey. Fruits were consumed almost two times more often than vegetables in all age groups studied. The majority of fruit consumption comprised apples and bananas, which made up more than 60 % of the whole fruit intake. Fruiting vegetables were the most frequently consumed group of vegetables.

Fruit and vegetable intakes in all age categories were under recommended levels and the diversity of fruit and vegetables consumed by the Czech children was relatively low.

To identify the information that adult consumers use on food labels, the difficulties they experience when using food labels and their reasons for not always using food labels. The relationship between their understanding of the information on the food label and their ability to make informed food choices was also investigated by means of their being required to perform labelling tasks.

A cross-sectional and descriptive research approach was followed. Data were collected by means of the administration of questionnaires.

Selected supermarkets in Potchefstroom and Klerksdorp in the North West Province, South Africa.

Questionnaires were administered to 174 consumers of African descent and Caucasians, ≥18 years of age, who were involved in purchasing household food products.

The information that is mostly used on food labels includes the expiry date, the list of ingredients and nutritional information, such as fat and cholesterol content. The difficulties associated with food labels were indicated mainly as being the font size of the print, whereas the reasons for not reading food labels were related to product attributes (‘taste and price are more important than is the nutritional content of the food product’), demographic characteristics (‘lack of education and nutritional knowledge’) and situational factors (‘experiencing time constraints’).

Results from the present study indicated that the expiry date was the most important information on a food label used by consumers. Scores from the labelling tasks showed that the respondents did not always understand how to use the information on food labels in order to make informed food choices. Barriers to consumer understanding and the use of food labels are highlighted. Improvements on current food labels in South Africa are suggested. Guidelines for consumer education regarding the use of food labels are also provided.