Journal
PUBLIC HEALTH NUTRITION
Volume 17, Issue 2, Pages 317-323Publisher
CAMBRIDGE UNIV PRESS
DOI: 10.1017/S1368980012005204
Keywords
Television viewing; Energy-dense snack foods; Mediation; Home availability; Adolescents
Funding
- Australia Research Council [DP0452044]
- William Buckland Foundation
- National Medical Research Council [479513]
- VicHealth Senior Public Health Research Fellowship
- Australian Research Council [DP0452044] Funding Source: Australian Research Council
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Objective: To examine whether home availability of energy-dense snack foods mediates the association between television (TV) viewing and energy-dense snack consumption among adolescents. Design: Cross-sectional. Setting: Secondary schools in Victoria, Australia. Subjects: Adolescents (n 2984) from Years 7 and 9 of secondary school completed a web-based survey, between September 2004 and July 2005, assessing their energy-dense snack food consumption, school-day and weekend-day TV viewing and home availability of energy-dense snack foods. Results: School-day and weekend-day TV viewing were positively associated with energy-dense snack consumption among adolescent boys (beta = 0.003, P< 0.001) and girls (beta= 0.03, P< 0.001). Furthermore, TV viewing (school day and weekend day) were positively associated with home availability of energy-dense snack foods among adolescent boys and girls and home availability of energy-dense snack foods was positively associated with energy-dense snack food consumption among boys (beta= 0.26, P< 0.001) and girls (beta= 0.28, P< 0.001). Home availability partly mediated the association between TV viewing and energy-dense snack consumption. Conclusions: The results of the present study suggest that TV viewing has a significant role to play in adolescent unhealthy eating behaviours. Future research should assess the efficacy of methods to reduce adolescent energy-dense snack food consumption by targeting parents to reduce home availability of energy-dense foods and by reducing TV viewing behaviours of adolescents.
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