Kounnavong Thidatheb, Sato Miho, Turner Christopher, Ferguson Elaine, Xayavong Hongkham, Vonglokham Manithong, Cox Sharon E, Okumura Junko, Moji Kazuhiko
School of Tropical Medicine and Global Health, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan.
Food and Markets Department, Natural Resources Institute, University of Greenwich, London, UK.
Glob Health Action. 2025 Dec;18(1):2451475. doi: 10.1080/16549716.2025.2451475. Epub 2025 Feb 3.
Dietary shifts among adolescents in low- and middle-income countries are exacerbating the double burden of malnutrition. Understanding the drivers of adolescent food acquisition and consumption practices and their lived experiences of the food environment is crucial for the effective development of targeted interventions and policies.
To explore drivers of food acquisition and consumption practices among adolescents from two suburban schools in the food environments of Phonhong District, Lao People's Democratic Republic.
We implemented a Qualitative-Geographical Information System methodology, featuring participatory photography, follow-up photo-elicitation interviews and focus group discussions with 30 adolescents from April to July 2022. Thematic analysis triangulated key themes from photos, maps, and transcripts.
Drivers of food acquisition and consumption included interactions across external, interpersonal, and intrapersonal domains. The six key themes were food availability and accessibility, product properties and convenience, peers and social media, caregivers and household practices, affordability, desirability, and autonomy, and perceptions, beliefs, and social norms. Consumption of ultra-processed foods was driven by the availability and accessibility of these affordable products in schools. By contrast, consumption of fruits and vegetables was driven by parental food practices at home.
A comprehensive multi-scalar approach is required to improve adolescent diets and nutrition in the suburban food environment of Lao PDR. This includes restricting the sale of ultra-processed foods in schools, promoting home gardening, increasing caregivers' awareness and engagement with adolescents about the benefits of healthy food choices, and leveraging social media to encourage healthy eating behaviors.
低收入和中等收入国家青少年的饮食转变正在加剧营养不良的双重负担。了解青少年食物获取和消费行为的驱动因素以及他们在食物环境中的生活经历，对于有效制定有针对性的干预措施和政策至关重要。
探讨老挝人民民主共和国丰洪区两个郊区学校青少年在食物环境中的食物获取和消费行为驱动因素。
我们在2022年4月至7月期间实施了定性地理信息系统方法，包括参与式摄影、后续照片启发式访谈以及与30名青少年进行焦点小组讨论。主题分析对来自照片、地图和文字记录的关键主题进行了三角验证。
食物获取和消费的驱动因素包括外部、人际和个人内部领域的相互作用。六个关键主题是食物的可获得性和可及性、产品特性和便利性、同伴和社交媒体、照顾者和家庭习惯、可承受性、吸引力和自主性，以及认知、信念和社会规范。超加工食品的消费是由这些价格实惠的产品在学校的可获得性和可及性驱动的。相比之下，水果和蔬菜的消费是由父母在家中的饮食行为驱动的。
需要一种全面的多尺度方法来改善老挝人民民主共和国郊区食物环境中青少年的饮食和营养状况。这包括限制学校中超加工食品的销售、推广家庭园艺、提高照顾者对健康食物选择益处的认识并增强其与青少年的互动，以及利用社交媒体鼓励健康的饮食行为。
