Study on factors related to top 10 junk food consumption at 8 to 16 years of age, in Haidian District of Beijing / 中华流行病学杂志

ABSTRACT

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the current situation of ten types of junk food consumption (assessed by World Health Organization) among children and adolescent as well as the contributing factors in Haidian District, Beijing so as to provide evidence for developing preventive and control measures and interventions.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A questionnaire survey was conducted to investigate the consumption of ten types of junk food practices in 1019 children and adolescent aged 8-16 years in Beijing Haidian District.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>One month prior to the study, 97.50% of the children and adolescent had eaten at least one type of junk food and 15.88% of them had eaten all types of them. Rates on having eaten deep fried food, pickled food, processed meat products, biscuits, coke or alike drinks, convenience/fast food, canned food, dried or preserved fruit, cold and sweet food, barbecue food etc. appeared to be 70.43%, 60.14%, 79.72%, 64.24%, 69.63%, 78.72%, 42.16%, 51.95%, 68.13%, 60.14% respectively. The rate on eaten more than once a day of these ten types were 26.95%, 36.88%, 34.84%, 32.97%, 27.40%, 28.18%, 37.91%, 26.15%, 37.39%, 22.10% respectively. The rates for "do not like" and "dislike" these ten types junk food were 10.96%, 27.42%, 7.08%, 12.11%, 6.56%, 6.59%, 17.80%, 13.59%, 3.42%, 5.19% respectively. Most of the children and adolescent ate junk food mainly during breakfast at home. Most of the surveyed children and adolescent did not have correct idea on nutrition of junk food. They received the information of junk food mainly from sources as advertisement on TV (67.95%), mother (9.02%), newspaper or magazines (6.71%). Many factors, such as individual factors (including physiological and psychological situations), social factors, family factors and the characteristics of food contributed to the eating junk food practices of children and adolescent.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Eating junk food is a popular event among children and adolescent in Beijing Haidian District. Education strategies on nutrition should be developed and launched in order to help children develop their own healthy eating behaviors.</p>