Community food environment, home food environment, and fruit and vegetable intake of children and adolescents

Abstract

Objectives: To determine (1) reliability of new food environment measures; (2) association between home food environment and fruit and vegetable (FV) intake; and (3) association between community and home food environment.

Methods: In 2005, a cross-sectional survey was conducted with readministration to assess test-retest reliability. Adolescents, parents of adolescents, and parents of children (n = 458) were surveyed in San Diego, Boston, and Cincinnati.

Results: Most subscales had acceptable reliability. Fruit and vegetable intake was positively associated with availability of healthful food (r = 0.15-0.27), FV (r = 0.22-0.34), and ratio of more-healthful/less-healthful food in the home (r = 0.23-0.31) and was negatively associated with less-healthful food in the home (r = -0.17 to -0.18). Home food environment was associated with household income but not with community food environment.

Conclusions and implications: A more healthful home food environment was related to youth FV intake. Higher income households had more healthful food in the home. The potential influence of neighborhood food outlets warrants further study.