Is the Perceived Fruit Accessibility Related to Fruit Intakes and Prevalence of Overweight in Disadvantaged Youth: A Cross-Sectional Study.
BACKGROUND
Few investigations have studied the relationship between home and school food environments, fruit intakes, and prevalence of overweight in children and adolescents from disadvantaged backgrounds. This study aimed to determine whether food environments for fruit intake at household and school levels affect fruit intakes and risk of overweight among children and adolescents with low household income.


METHODS
Students (n = 3148) in Seoul, Korea completed questionnaires pertaining to select aspects of their food environments, frequency of fruit intakes, and weight status. Chi-square tests and logistic regressions evaluated associations between the aforementioned variables.


RESULTS
Participants consumed fruit an average of 0.77 times per day, though its frequency increased when fruit accessibility was perceived positively. The percentage of overweight participants was 23.5% for boys and 22.8% for girls. Generally, fruit intake frequency was linked to a lower prevalence of overweight. Regular provision of fruit in school lunches was associated with a reduced risk of overweight among elementary school girls (odds ratio (OR): 0.52, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.30-0.92), and having someone at home to prepare fruit was associated with a reduced risk of overweight in elementary school boys (OR: 0.64, 95% CI: 0.43-0.94) and girls (OR: 0.63, 95% CI: 0.43-0.93).


CONCLUSIONS
The frequency of fruit intake was low among disadvantaged youth. Increasing access to fruit in their food environments appears to enhance consumption and lower the risk of overweight, especially for elementary school girls.
['Yang|Narae|N|0000-0002-6592-4584', 'Kim|Kirang|K|0000-0003-3054-8758']
D000293:Adolescent D002648:Child D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies D004032:Diet D004435:Eating D005247:Feeding Behavior D005638:Fruit D006801:Humans D008297:Male D063766:Pediatric Obesity D010465:Perception D015995:Prevalence D056910:Republic of Korea D012574:Schools D013334:Students D035862:Vulnerable Populations
fruit overweight home school food environment children adolescents obesity