MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
Division of Epidemiology and Community Health, School of Public Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, USA.
Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2020 Oct 9;17(1):130. doi: 10.1186/s12966-020-01024-4.
Early adulthood is a period of rapid personal development when individuals experience major life transitions (e.g. leaving the parental home, leaving education, beginning employment, cohabitation and parenthood). Changes in social and physical environments associated with these transitions may influence development of health-related behaviours. Consumption of fast food is one behaviour associated with poor diet and long-term health outcomes. In this study we assess how frequency of fast food consumption changes across early adulthood, and how major life transitions are associated with changes in fast food intake.
Data were collected across four waves of the Project EAT study, from mean age 14.9 (SD = 1.6) to mean age 31.1 (SD = 1.6) years. Participants reporting data at two or more waves were included (n = 2902). Participants reported past week frequency of eating food from a fast food restaurant and responded to questions on living arrangements, education and employment participation, and having children. To assess changes in fast food we developed a latent growth model incorporating an underlying trajectory of fast food intake, five life transitions, and time-invariant covariates.
Mean fast food intake followed an underlying quadratic trajectory, increasing through adolescence to a maximum of 1.88 (SE 0.94) times/week and then decreasing again through early adulthood to 0.76 (SE 2.06) times/week at wave 4. Beginning full-time employment and becoming a parent both contributed to increases in fast food intake, each resulting in an average increase in weekly fast food intake of 0.16 (p < 0.01) times/week. Analysis of changes between pairs of waves revealed stronger associations for these two transitions between waves 1-2 (mean age 14.9-19.4 years) than seen in later waves. Leaving the parental home and beginning cohabitation were associated with decreases in fast food intake of - 0.17 (p = 0.004) and - 0.16 (p = 0.007) times/week respectively, while leaving full-time education was not associated with any change.
The transitions of beginning full-time employment and becoming a parent were associated with increases in fast food intake. Public health policy or interventions designed to reduce fast food intake in young adults may benefit from particular focus on populations experiencing these transitions, to ameliorate their impact.
青年期是个人快速发展的时期，个体在此期间经历重大的生活转变（例如，离开父母家、离开教育、开始就业、同居和为人父母）。与这些转变相关的社会和物理环境的变化可能会影响与健康相关的行为的发展。食用快餐是与不良饮食和长期健康结果相关的一种行为。在这项研究中，我们评估了快餐消费在青年期如何变化，以及重大生活转变如何与快餐摄入的变化相关。
数据来自 EAT 项目的四个波次，参与者的平均年龄为 14.9 岁（标准差=1.6）至 31.1 岁（标准差=1.6）。纳入了在两个或更多波次报告数据的参与者（n=2902）。参与者报告了过去一周内从快餐店食用食物的频率，并回答了关于居住安排、教育和就业参与以及生育子女的问题。为了评估快餐的变化，我们开发了一个潜在的增长模型，其中包含快餐摄入的潜在轨迹、五个生活转变和时间不变的协变量。
平均快餐摄入量遵循潜在的二次轨迹，在青春期通过增加达到每周 1.88 次（标准差 0.94）的最大值，然后在青年早期再次减少，在第 4 波达到每周 0.76 次（标准差 2.06）。开始全职工作和成为父母都导致快餐摄入量增加，每次平均每周快餐摄入量增加 0.16 次（p<0.01）。对波次之间变化的分析表明，在第 1-2 波次（平均年龄 14.9-19.4 岁）之间，这些转变之间的关联比在后期波次中更强。离开父母家并开始同居与快餐摄入量分别减少了-0.17 次（p=0.004）和-0.16 次（p=0.007），而离开全职教育与任何变化均无关。
开始全职工作和成为父母的转变与快餐摄入量的增加有关。旨在减少年轻成年人快餐摄入量的公共卫生政策或干预措施可能受益于特别关注经历这些转变的人群，以减轻其影响。
