Fogelholm Mikael, Vepsäläinen Henna, Meinilä Jelena, McRae Cameron, Saarijärvi Hannu, Erkkola Maijaliisa, Nevalainen Jaakko
Department of Food and Nutrition, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.
Department of Food and Nutrition, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.
Am J Clin Nutr. 2024 May;119(5):1346-1353. doi: 10.1016/j.ajcnut.2024.03.003. Epub 2024 Mar 7.
Higher cost of healthy foods may explain unhealthy dietary patterns in lower-income households. Unfortunately, combining food selection and nutrient intake data to price and expenditure is challenging. Food retailer's customer loyalty card data, linked to nutrient composition database, is a novel method for simultaneous exploration of food purchases, price, and nutrition.
We studied the associations between perceived income adequacy (PIA) as a grouping variable with price (per kilogram or megajoule) and the volume of purchases (percentage of expenditure or energy) simultaneously as outcome variables for 17 most purchased food groups.
We used 1-year (2018) loyalty card data from the largest grocery chain in Finland. Participants were 28,783 loyalty cardholders who made ≥41% of food purchases from the retailer and answered an online questionnaire at the midpoint of data collection. The 5-level PIA described the perceived financial situation in the household. Energy and nutrient content of foods purchased were from the Finnish Food Composition Database Fineli. We calculated the Nutrient Rich Food Index per 100 g food using 11 nutrients. Trends in prices and expenditures between PIA levels were analyzed using 2-sided Jonckheere-Terpstra tests, with false discovery rate control (Benjamini-Hochberg method) and confounder adjustments (inverse probability weighting).
Lower PIA participants selected cheaper foods per kilogram and megajoule within most food groups. They also favored unhealthy food groups cheap in energy [<1 € (USD 1.18)/MJ]. Despite lower purchase price, the expenditure (%) among lower PIA was higher on alcohol, snacks, sugar-sweetened beverages, and sweets and chocolates.
Participants with lower PIA showed stronger price awareness. It is crucial to consider the pricing of competing alternative food groups, when steering toward environmentally sustainable and healthier food purchases. Package labeling might also direct the selection of healthier choices among the less expensive items within a food group.
健康食品成本较高可能是低收入家庭不健康饮食模式的原因。不幸的是，将食物选择和营养摄入数据与价格和支出相结合具有挑战性。食品零售商的客户忠诚度卡数据与营养成分数据库相链接，是一种同时探索食品购买、价格和营养的新方法。
我们将感知收入充足性（PIA）作为分组变量，同时将价格（每千克或兆焦耳）和购买量（支出或能量的百分比）作为17种最常购买食品组的结果变量，研究它们之间的关联。
我们使用了芬兰最大的杂货连锁店2018年的1年忠诚度卡数据。参与者为28783名忠诚度卡持有者，他们从该零售商处购买了≥41%的食品，并在数据收集中期回答了一份在线问卷。5级PIA描述了家庭的感知财务状况。购买食品的能量和营养成分来自芬兰食品成分数据库Fineli。我们使用11种营养素计算每100克食品的营养丰富食品指数。使用双侧Jonckheere-Terpstra检验分析PIA水平之间的价格和支出趋势，并进行错误发现率控制（Benjamini-Hochberg方法）和混杂因素调整（逆概率加权）。
PIA较低的参与者在大多数食品组中选择每千克和每兆焦耳更便宜的食品。他们也青睐能量价格便宜的不健康食品组[<1欧元（1.18美元）/兆焦耳]。尽管购买价格较低，但PIA较低者在酒精、零食、含糖饮料以及糖果和巧克力上的支出（%）较高。
PIA较低的参与者表现出更强的价格意识。在引导人们购买环境可持续且更健康的食品时，考虑竞争替代食品组的定价至关重要。包装标签也可能指导人们在食品组中较便宜的商品中选择更健康的选项。
