Health Behaviours and Awareness of Canada's Food Guide: A Population-based Study

Abstract

Purpose: Lifestyle behaviours among adults reporting awareness of Canada's Food Guide (CFG) are described.

Methods: Data from a cross-sectional survey of adults from Alberta were used to estimate the prevalence of reported health behaviours among respondents aware of the CFG.

Results: Respondents (n = 1044) reported general awareness of CFG (mean age 50.3 years; 54.2% female) of whom 82.2% reported awareness of specific CFG recommendations. Respondents reported frequently reading food labels (>58.0%), reading the number of calories (45.5%), the amount of sodium (49.5%), the amount of fat (46.7%), and the type of fat (45.5%) on the food label. Most respondents (90.0%) reported frequently selecting foods to promote health. Approximately one-third of the respondents (35.8%) reported frequently consuming ≥5 portions of vegetables and fruit per day and regularly participating in physical activity (55.3%). Body weight was perceived as healthy by 63.4% of the respondents. Most engaged in 2 health behaviours frequently. Adjusting for important socio-demographic characteristics, those who reported frequently consuming ≥5 portions of vegetables and fruit per day were more likely to engage in a second health behaviour outlined in CGF (OR: 23.6, 95% CI (16.2-34.4)).

Conclusion: Awareness of CFG did not translate to positive health behaviours. More proactive population level strategies to support specific health behaviours as outlined in CFG might be warranted.