Nepal Vishnu P, Mgbere Osaro, Banerjee Deborah, Arafat Raouf R
Houston Department of Health and Human Services, Houston, TX, USA.
J Prim Care Community Health. 2011 Jul 1;2(3):142-7. doi: 10.1177/2150131911399446. Epub 2011 Apr 7.
The consumption of the recommended amount of fruits and vegetables is believed to help prevent nutrient deficiency disorders and lower the risk of several chronic diseases. Information on the disparity of fruit and vegetable consumption may be useful in designing targeted health promotion programs for increasing fruit and vegetable consumption. The objective of this pilot study was to examine disparities in fruit and vegetable consumption among Houston residents based on sociodemographic characteristics.
The authors conducted bivariate and multivariate analyses to examine the associations between sociodemographic characteristics and fruit and vegetable consumption using a random digit dialing (RDD) health survey data (N = 1001) collected in Houston, Texas.
Bivariate analysis showed that there were significant associations between fruit and vegetable consumption and education (P < .01); race/ethnicity (P < .001); marital status (P < .001); and employment status (P < .05). Multivariate analysis indicated that fruit and vegetable consumption pattern could be significantly (P ≤ .05) predicted by gender, race, and marital status. Respondents who were of other race category were less likely than whites to consume fruits and vegetables, while married respondents and women were more likely to consume fruits and vegetables compared to the unmarried and men, respectively.
Health promotion programs aimed at increasing the consumption of fruits and vegetables should consider developing targeted intervention for men, people with less formal education, minority race/ethnicity, people who are unemployed, and those who are unmarried.
人们认为，食用推荐量的水果和蔬菜有助于预防营养缺乏症，并降低患几种慢性病的风险。有关水果和蔬菜消费差异的信息可能有助于设计有针对性的健康促进计划，以增加水果和蔬菜的消费量。这项试点研究的目的是根据社会人口学特征，研究休斯顿居民在水果和蔬菜消费方面的差异。
作者使用在得克萨斯州休斯顿收集的随机数字拨号（RDD）健康调查数据（N = 1001），进行了双变量和多变量分析，以研究社会人口学特征与水果和蔬菜消费之间的关联。
双变量分析表明，水果和蔬菜消费与教育程度（P <.01）、种族/民族（P <.001）、婚姻状况（P <.001）和就业状况（P <.05）之间存在显著关联。多变量分析表明，水果和蔬菜消费模式可由性别、种族和婚姻状况显著（P≤.05）预测。其他种族类别的受访者比白人食用水果和蔬菜的可能性小，而已婚受访者和女性分别比未婚者和男性更有可能食用水果和蔬菜。
旨在增加水果和蔬菜消费量的健康促进计划应考虑针对男性、受正规教育较少的人、少数种族/民族、失业者和未婚者制定有针对性的干预措施。
