Selected health characteristics are associated with urban Canadians' acceptability of policies promoting healthier restaurant food environments

Abstract

Objective: The adoption of policies promoting healthier restaurant food environments is contingent on their acceptability. Limited evidence exists regarding individual characteristics associated with restaurant food environment policy acceptability, especially health-related characteristics. This study examined associations between health characteristics and restaurant food environment policy acceptability among urban Canadians.

Design: Links between health characteristics and complete agreement levels with selected policies were examined using data in the cross-sectional Targeting Healthy Eating and Physical Activity survey study, that is, a large pan-Canadian study on policy acceptability. For each policy, several logistic multilevel regression analyses were conducted.

Setting: Canada's seventeen most populated census metropolitan areas.

Participants: Urban Canadian adults responded to the survey (n 27 162).

Results: Body mass index was not associated with acceptability after adjustments for other health and sociodemographic characteristics were made. Across all policies and analyses, those reporting excellent or very good health statuses were more likely to be in complete agreement with targeted policies than those with good health statuses. For selected policies and analyses, those reporting poor health statuses were also more likely to be in complete agreement than those describing their health status as good. For all policies and analyses, both those consuming restaurant-prepared foods daily and those never consuming these foods were more likely to be in complete agreement than those consuming these foods once per week.

Conclusions: More research is needed to explain discrepancies in acceptability according to health characteristics. Bringing this study's findings to the attention of policymakers may help build momentum for policy enactment.

Keywords: Health; Multilevel analysis; Policy; Public opinion; Restaurant.

Figure 1.

Predicted proportions, based on model 2, of participants being in complete agreement with each restaurant food environment policy according to BMI category. Predicted proportions are illustrated for individuals corresponding to the following reference categories (i.e. men, aged 55 years and over, with university training, with an annual household income of $40 000–$79 999, that were born in Canada, that do not have an Indigenous status, that have a good perceived health status and that eat restaurant-prepared foods once per week).

Figure 2.

Predicted proportions, based on model 2, of participants in complete agreement with each restaurant food environment policy according to perceived health status. Predicted proportions are illustrated for individuals corresponding to following reference categories (i.e. men, aged 55 years and over, with university training, with an annual household income of $40 000–$79 999, that were born in Canada, that do not have an Indigenous status, that have a normal weight and that eat restaurant-prepared foods once per week).

Figure 3.

Predicted proportions, based on model 2, of participants in complete agreement with each restaurant food environment policy according to frequency of consuming restaurant-prepared foods. Predicted proportions are illustrated for individuals corresponding to the following reference categories (i.e. men, aged 55 years and over, with university training, with an annual household income of $40 000–$79 999, that were born in Canada, that do not have an Indigenous status, that have a normal BMI and that have a good perceived health status).