Evaluation of Fast Food Behavior in Pre-School Children and Parents Following a One-Year Intervention with Nutrition Education

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

Yongqing Gao⁸  Yuee Huang⁷  Yongjun Zhang⁶  Fengqiong Liu²  Cindy Xin Feng⁹  Tingting Liu⁵  Changwei Li³  DongDong Lin¹  Yongping Mu⁴  Siobhan L. Tarver³  Mao Wang² 

[1] School of Science and Engineering, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA; E-Mail:;School of Public Health, Sun Yatsen University, Guangzhou 510080, China; E-Mail:;School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA; E-Mails:;The Affiliated People’s Hospital of Inner Mongolia Medical University, Hohhot 010110, China; E-Mail:;Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; E-Mail:;Yijishan Hospital of Wannan Medical University, Wuhu 241001, China; E-Mail:;School of Public Health, Wannan Medical University, Wuhu 241001, China; E-Mail:;School of Food Science, Guangdong Pharmaceutical University, Zhongshan 528458, China; E-Mail:;School of Public Health, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon SK S7N 5E5, Canada; E-Mail:

关键词: western style fast food;    Chinese parents;    young children;   

DOI  :  10.3390/ijerph110706780

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

A community-based intervention study was conducted to assess a nutrition education intervention on western style fast food consumption among Chinese children and parents. Eight kindergartens from three district areas of Hefei City (a total of 1252 children aged 4–6 years and their parents) were randomly selected. Descriptive and analytical statistical methods were used to evaluate the baseline, midterm, and final western style fast food knowledge, attitude, and practice in both parents and children were used to identify and compare the knowledge, attitude, and practice in the parents and children. Parents and children were divided into “intervention” and “control” groups based on nutrition education status. Consumption of western style fast food at breakfast in Chinese children and parents is not high. The main reasons for this in children is that consumption of western style fast food is not viewed as “food”, but rather as a “gift” or “interesting”. The time of children’s consumption of western style fast food is mostly likely to be in the weekends. The nutrition education modified the parents’ western style fast food behavior (p < 0.01), although it did not change significantly in children. The healthy nutrition concept should be built up among Chinese, especially in children. Insights from the families provide leads for future research and ideas for the nutrition education.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2014 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.