Assessing food and nutrition literacy and its related factors in school-age children in Baoding / 中国学校卫生

ABSTRACT

Objective@#To assess the food and nutrition literacy level of school-age children and its related factors, and to provide targets for further nutrition health education and nutrition improvement action.@*Methods@#A total of 4 359 school-age children, from third to eighth grade in 2 middle schools and 3 primary schools of Baoding city of Hebei Province, were selected as subjects using convenient sampling method. For all participants’ food and nutrition literacy evaluation, social demographic characteristics and family food environment were investigated.@*Results@#The average score of food and nutrition literacy of valid respondents was (61.91±9.22), and the scores of functional, interactive and critical literacy increased successively. The score of food and nutrition knowledge was higher than that of skill, and the score of "food intake" skill was the lowest(60.45±11.00). Children’s food and nutrition literacy increased with age and grade during primary school period, but the literacy of junior school students was lower than that of high-level graders in primary school(P<0.05). Children who were female, the only children, non-resident in school, urban registered permanent residence, in a more affluent family, cared by their parents/grandparents with a higher education level, and had nutrition education experience in school, had significantly higher food and nutrition literacy(P<0.05). But the interactive literacy of only children, non-resident in school and urban registered children was significantly lower(P<0.05). The family food environment was significantly correlated with children’s food and nutrition literacy. The total score of food nutrition literacy was higher for the children who often had fruits at home, rarely ate out, eating without screen, and communicated food and nutrition information with families frequently(P<0.05).@*Conclusion@#The food and nutrition literacy of school-age children is not high, which is related with individual and family’s demographic characteristic, nutrition education experience in school and family food environment. Children in rural areas and younger age, with a large number of family children and poor family economic status and food environment, should be the main target population of nutrition education and nutrition improvement.