Objective. To compare energy balance and nutrient intake of elite and non-elite school-aged gymnasts, as well as to evaluate their nutritional knowledge and eating attitude and its effect on dietary intake and practices. Methods. Demographic information, anthropometric measurements, menstrual status, sources of nutritional information, nutritional habits as well as supplement use was documented. Eating attitudes were measured by the EAT26 test and nutritional knowledge by a standardised questionnaire. Dietary intake and practices were determined with a 3-day weighed food record, while energy expenditure was measured with an Actical® accelerometer (Mini Mitter Co., Inc. Bend, OR, USA). Results. The total daily energy intake (non-elite = 6 944.37 ± 1 272.28 kJ vs. elite = 6 543.01 ± 2 570 kJ) in both groups was similar to their daily energy expenditure values (non-elite = 6 393.77 ± 1 244.19 kJ vs. elite = 6 696.09 ± 1 676.58 kJ). Elite gymnasts tended to have higher protein (21.37 vs. 15.4% total energy intake (TE), small effect size, d = 0.1) and lower fat (28.9 vs. 33.6% TE, medium effect size, d = - 0.6) intakes. More non-elite gymnasts (n = 7, 88.88%) used micronutrient supplements than elite gymnasts (n = 4, 45.45%, medium effect size, d = 0.45). Most of the gymnasts (55%) ate snacks during the day, which consisted mostly of refined carbohydrates. In the total group of gymnasts the most frequently used source of nutritional information was the coach (60%). There was no difference in nutritional knowledge between the groups (elite = 61.8% vs. non-elite = 62.8% respectively). Lastly, elite gymnasts had a practically significantly higher risk than non-elite gymnasts to follow a diet (large effect size, d = 1.32), while non-elite gymnasts exercised practically significantly more self-control over their food intake com pared to elite gymnasts (large effect size, d = - 1.03). Conclusions. South African elite gymnasts do not differ from non-elite gymnasts in terms of energy-, carbohydrate-, protein-, or fat intake. There is also no difference in energy expenditure or risk in developing an eating disorder, probably due to less competitiveness compared to other international gymnasts. / Thesis (M.Sc. (Dietetics))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2005.

Policymakers, politicians, and media outlets have declared an obesity epidemic. In doing so, they have named a variety of villains, including fast food. Despite the framing of fast food as being a leading contributor to weight gain and obesity, we have yet to understand the impact that fast food has on those who work with it every day. The purpose of this dissertation is to understand the food choices, BMIs, and self perceived weights of the food service worker population. Using Pierre Bourdieu’s concepts of habitus and field, I investigate the role of the workplace and external cultural influences, such as the family, in navigating an obseogenic workplace environment that is centered on selling highly caloric food to the Canadian public in a quick and cost effective manner. The first stage of this research addresses the question: Are food service workers more likely to be overweight or obese and perceive themselves as being overweight compared to the general population? In order to do this, I analyzed secondary survey data from the Canadian Community Health Survey cycle 5.1 (2009-2010). I used logistic regression techniques to construct models that analyze the likelihood of having high BMIs and high self perceived weights in both the food service worker and general Canadian populations. In addition to this, I sought to understand the food choices that contribute to weight gain in fast food workers. To do this, I conducted forty semi-structured qualitative interviews with workers from a variety of fast food chains. The results of my research disprove my original hypothesis that food service workers are more likely to be overweight or obese because of their frequent exposure to fast food. Instead, I found that they are less likely to be overweight or obese than the general Canadian population. Additionally, they are also less likely to perceive themselves as being overweight or obese. Through the qualitative interviews, I found that these individuals participate in a process of regulation where they monitor their food intake at work. Additionally, I found that their consumption patterns stemmed from habitus generated through cultural exposures in other areas of their lives. Pierre Bourdieu (1984) argues that we develop habitus through meaningful cultural exposure. We use our habitus, or engrained dispositions, to navigate hierarchical spaces or fields. Through this research, I found that workers viewed their jobs as being temporary and their cultural consumption patterns did not seem to change from their exposures to their workplaces. The majority were part time students, working in this industry to pay for living expenses and tuition. For the most part, they were raised in middle class homes where their mothers prepared food for their families from scratch on a daily basis. Fast food was viewed as a special treat and not an item to consume on a regular basis. I conclude that the meaningful exposures we have to food and cultural norms throughout life are more important in determining our food choices than our exposure to fast food restaurants.

Objective. To compare energy balance and nutrient intake of elite and non-elite school-aged gymnasts, as well as to evaluate their nutritional knowledge and eating attitude and its effect on dietary intake and practices. Methods. Demographic information, anthropometric measurements, menstrual status, sources of nutritional information, nutritional habits as well as supplement use was documented. Eating attitudes were measured by the EAT26 test and nutritional knowledge by a standardised questionnaire. Dietary intake and practices were determined with a 3-day weighed food record, while energy expenditure was measured with an Actical® accelerometer (Mini Mitter Co., Inc. Bend, OR, USA). Results. The total daily energy intake (non-elite = 6 944.37 ± 1 272.28 kJ vs. elite = 6 543.01 ± 2 570 kJ) in both groups was similar to their daily energy expenditure values (non-elite = 6 393.77 ± 1 244.19 kJ vs. elite = 6 696.09 ± 1 676.58 kJ). Elite gymnasts tended to have higher protein (21.37 vs. 15.4% total energy intake (TE), small effect size, d = 0.1) and lower fat (28.9 vs. 33.6% TE, medium effect size, d = - 0.6) intakes. More non-elite gymnasts (n = 7, 88.88%) used micronutrient supplements than elite gymnasts (n = 4, 45.45%, medium effect size, d = 0.45). Most of the gymnasts (55%) ate snacks during the day, which consisted mostly of refined carbohydrates. In the total group of gymnasts the most frequently used source of nutritional information was the coach (60%). There was no difference in nutritional knowledge between the groups (elite = 61.8% vs. non-elite = 62.8% respectively). Lastly, elite gymnasts had a practically significantly higher risk than non-elite gymnasts to follow a diet (large effect size, d = 1.32), while non-elite gymnasts exercised practically significantly more self-control over their food intake com pared to elite gymnasts (large effect size, d = - 1.03). Conclusions. South African elite gymnasts do not differ from non-elite gymnasts in terms of energy-, carbohydrate-, protein-, or fat intake. There is also no difference in energy expenditure or risk in developing an eating disorder, probably due to less competitiveness compared to other international gymnasts. / Thesis (M.Sc. (Dietetics))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2005.

abstract: This dissertation offers three essays that investigate consumers’ health-related food choices and behaviors from three different, yet complementary, angles. The first essay uses an eye-tracking experiment to examine consumers’ visual attention to the Nutrition Facts Panels for healthy and unhealthy products. In this essay, I focus on how involvement and familiarity affect consumers’ attention toward the Nutrition Facts panel and how these two psychological factors interact with new label format changes in attracting consumers’ attention. In the second essay, I demonstrate using individual-level scanner data that nutritional attributes interact with marketing mix elements to affect consumers’ nutrition intake profiles and their intra-category substitution patterns. My findings suggest that marketing-mix sensitivities are correlated with consumers’ preferences for nutrient attributes in ways that depend on the “healthiness” of the nutrient. For instance, featuring promotes is positively correlated with “healthy” nutritional characteristics such as high-protein, low-fat, or low-carbohydrates, whereas promotion and display are positively correlated with preferences for “unhealthy” characteristics such as high-fat, or high-carbohydrates. I use model simulations to show that some marketing-mix elements are able to induce consumers to purchase items with higher maximum-content levels than others. The fourth chapter shows that dieters are not all the same. I develop and validate a new scale that measures lay theories about abstinence vs. moderation. My findings from a series of experiments indicate that dieters’ recovery from recalled vs. actual indulgences depend on whether they favor abstinence or moderation. However, compensatory coping strategies provide paths for people with both lay theories to recover after an indulgence, in their own ways. The three essays provide insights into individual differences that determine approaches of purchase behaviors, and consumption patterns, and life style that people choose, and these insights have potential policy implications to aid in designing the food-related interventions and policies to improve the healthiness of consumers’ consumption profiles and more general food well-being. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Agribusiness 2018

Femfaktormodellen är en personlighetsteori som används för att beskriva och utvärdera människors personligheter. Denna studie utgick från Femfaktormodellen och undersökte sambandet mellan personlighetsdrag och kostval, vilka könsskillnader som fanns avseende personlighetsdrag och kostval samt vilka de främsta självrapporterade anledningarna till att avstå eller minska köttkonsumtion var. Deltagarna (N=274) var universitetsstudenter över 18 år gamla vid ett svenskt universitet. Deltagarna rekryterades via Internet och besvarade en digital enkät. Resultaten av bivariat korrelationsanalys samt variansanalyser visade att personlighetsdraget ”Öppenhet” korrelerar med kostval och att det finns könsskillnader i en människas kostval beroende på grad av personlighetsdragen ”Känslomässig instabilitet” och ”Vänlighet”. Resultaten visade även att de främsta självrapporterade anledningarna att avstå eller minska köttkonsumtion beror på kön, kostval samt grad av ”Känslomässig instabilitet”. Sammanfattningsvis har denna studie bidragit med ny kunskap beträffande sambandet mellan personlighetsdrag och kostval. / Big-Five personality is a personality theory that is used to describe and evaluate people's personalities. This study was based on the Big-Five personality theory and examined the relationship between personality traits and food choices, what gender differences that existed regarding personality traits and food choices and which the primary self-reported reasons to abstain or decrease meat consumption were. The participants (N=274) were university students over 18 years old at a Swedish university. The participants were recruited through Internet and answered a digital survey. The results from bivariate correlational analysis and analysis of variance showed that the personality trait ”Openness” correlates with food choices and that there are gender differences in a person's food choice depending on the level of the personality traits ”Neuroticism” and ”Agreeableness”. The results also showed that the primary self-reported reasons to abstain or decrease meat consumption depends on gender, food choices and level of ”Neuroticism”. In summary this study has contributed new knowledge regarding the relationship between personality traits and food choices.

Yes / The present study explored associations between food choice motives, attitudes towards and intention to adopt personalised nutrition, to inform communication strategies based on consumer priorities and concerns. Design/Setting: A survey was administered online which included the Food Choice Questionnaire (FCQ) and items assessing attitudes towards and intention to adopt personalised nutrition. Subjects: Nationally representative samples were recruited in nine EU countries (n 9381). Results: Structural equation modelling indicated that the food choice motives ‘weight control’, ‘mood’, ‘health’ and ‘ethical concern’ had a positive association and ‘price’ had a negative association with attitude towards, and intention to adopt, personalised nutrition. ‘Health’ was positively associated and ‘familiarity’ negatively associated with attitude towards personalised nutrition. The effects of ‘weight control’, ‘ethical concern’, ‘mood’ and ‘price’ on intention to adopt personalised nutrition were partially mediated by attitude. The effects of ‘health’ and ‘familiarity’ were fully mediated by attitude. ‘Sensory appeal’ was negatively and directly associated with intention to adopt personalised nutrition. Conclusions: Personalised nutrition providers may benefit from taking into consideration the importance of underlying determinants of food choice in potential users, particularly weight control, mood and price, when promoting services and in tailoring communications that are motivationally relevant.

Yes / While moral concern for animals has become increasingly important for both consumer food choice and food policy makers, previous research demonstrated that meat eaters attribute lower moral status and mental capacities to animals raised for meat compared to non-food animals. The current research investigated whether this strategic flexibility in moral concern and mind perceptions also occurs when considering aquatic food animals and animals used for dairy and egg products, and the degree to which these concerns and perceptions are evident in pescatarians and vegetarians. We compared perceptions (mind attributions and moral concern) of land food animals versus aquatic food animals, and of animals in the meat versus dairy and egg industry between omnivores (n = 122), pescatarians (n = 118), vegetarians (n = 138), vegans (n = 120), and flexitarians (n = 60). Pescatarians scored lower than other dietary groups on moral concern and mind attribution for aquatic animals relative to farmed land animals. Unlike the other dietary groups, pescatarians and vegetarians scored lower on moral concern and mind attribution for dairy than beef cows and for layer chickens than broiler chickens. These findings demonstrate that pescatarians and vegetarians were flexible in their moral thinking about different types of food animals in ways that suited their consumption habits, even when the same animal was evaluated (e.g., dairy vs beef cows). This research highlights the psychological barriers that might prevent people from reducing animal product consumption and may need to be addressed in interventions to encourage transitioning towards more plant-based diets. / The full-text of this article will be released for public view at the end of the publisher embargo on 14 June 2025.

Introduktion: Ohälsosamma matvanor är en av de största riskfaktorerna för ohälsa och förekommer oftare i socioekonomiskt svagare grupper. Tillgängligheten av livsmedel påverkar både vilka kostval vi gör och hur mycket vi konsumerar. Marknadsföring påverkar tillgängligheten och används för att styra konsumenternas livsmedelsval. För att främja hälsosamma val behövs stödjande miljöer med tillgängliga, prisvärda och hälsosamma livsmedel. Syfte: Syftet är att undersöka hur hälsosamma livsmedelsval har samband med konsumenters upplevelser av dagligvaruhandelns bidrag till stödjande miljöer för hälsosamma livsmedelsval. Metod: En kvantitativ tvärsnittsdesign tillämpades. Datainsamlingen skedde genom webbenkät vilken länkades till informanter via sociala medier. Deskriptiv analys användes samt positiv oddskvot för att belysa det salutogena perspektivet. Ett p-värde på <0,05 ansågs signifikant. Resultat: Respondenterna (n=346) var kvinnor och män över 21 år. Majoriteten var kvinnor i medelåldern, med högskole- eller universitetsexamen samt medelinkomst. Konsumenter som väljer hälsosamma livsmedel har samband med sinnesstämning, naturliga livsmedel och tillgänglighet. Slutsats: Det är viktigt att hälsofrämjande insatser riktas mot hela samhället och stärker medvetenheten om hälsosam kost. Då studien visade samband mellan konsumenters upplevelser av dagligvaruhandelns stödjande miljöer och hälsosamma livsmedelsval, bör hela livsmedelskedjan medvetandegöras om hur folkhälsan påverkas av stödjande miljöer. / Introduction: Unhealthy eating habits are one of the major risk factors för unhealth and occur more frequently in low socioeconomic areas. The availability of food affects both the dietary choices we make and how much we consume. Marketing affects accessibility and is used to guide consumers' food choices. In order to promote healthy choices, supportive environments with available, affordable and healthy foods are needed. Aim: The aim is to investigate how healthy food choices are linked to consumers' experiences of the grocery retailer's contribution to supportive environments for healthy food choices. Methods: A quantitative cross-sectional design was applied. Data was collected with a web survey. Descriptive analysis applied as well as logistic regression analysis and positive odds ratio was used to illustrate the salutogenic perspective. A p-value of <0.05 was considered significant. Result: The respondents (n = 346) were women and men over 21 years. The majority were middle-aged women, with a college or university degree and middle income. There is an association between consumers who choose healthy foods and mood, natural foods and availability. Conclusion: It is important that health promotion efforts are directed at the entire society and strengthen the awareness of healthy eating. As the study showed a correlation between consumers' experiences of the grocery's supportive environments and healthy food choices, the entire food supply chain should be made aware of how public health is affected by supportive environments.

La santé et l'environnement sont, avec l'économie et le social, deux piliers de l'alimentation durable dont la convergence est discutée. On peut les estimer respectivement à travers la qualité nutritionnelle et l'impact carbone. Dans le cadre de ce travail de thèse, nous proposons d'appréhender la problématique de la convergence nutrition-environnement en adoptant deux approches différentes. Tout d'abord, nous avons estimé la conséquence, sur l'impact carbone de l'alimentation, d'une modification de choix alimentaires individuels. Puis, en classant les individus en fonction de la qualité nutritionnelle de leur alimentation, nous avons estimé si l'impact carbone était différent en fonction de cette qualité nutritionnelle. Premièrement, nous avons montré que la modification des choix alimentaires ne peut s'avérer être une stratégie de réduction majeure de l'impact carbone associé à l'alimentation. Deuxièmement, le niveau d'impact carbone ne diffère que très peu en fonction de la qualité nutritionnelle de l'alimentation. Une bonne qualité nutritionnelle semble même associée à un plus fort impact carbone. Les résultats conduisent à remettre en question l'idée communément relevée dans la littérature qu'il existerait une convergence "naturelle" dans le domaine de l'alimentation entre la promotion de la santé publique et la protection de l'environnement. Notre approche est originale, car nous avons pris en compte la variabilité de l'alimentation réelle des individus, et que nous avons estimé avec précision la qualité nutritionnelle de leur alimentation. Cette thématique constitue un vaste champ de recherches qu'il convient de défricher de façon urgente. / Health and environment are, with economy and social concerns, two pillars of food sustainability whose compatibility is discussed. They can be estimated through nutritional quality and carbon footprint respectively. In this thesis, we propose to analyze the convergence between nutrition and environment by adopting two different approaches. First, we have estimated the effect of modifying individual food choices on diet-related carbon footprint. Second, by classifying the individuals based on the nutritional quality of their diet, we compared the diet-related carbon footprint among the classes of individuals. First, we have shown that changes in food choices may not be an efficient strategy for reducing the diet-related carbon footprint. Second, the level of carbon footprint did not differ much according to the nutritional quality of diets. A high quality diet even seems associated with a higher carbon footprint.The results lead to question the idea commonly found in the food and nutrition literature that there is a “natural” convergence between promotion of public health and environmental protection. Our approach is original because we have taken into account the variability of realistic individual food consumptions and we estimated the nutritional quality of diets with precision. This topic is a vast field of researches which has to be explored urgently.

Thesis (M. Tech. - Food Service Management, Dept. of Hospitality, Tourism and PR management)--Vaal University of Technology / Malnutrition amongst pre-school children age two-to-five-years is a growing world-wide concern. This is mainly due to poverty, diseases and inadequate dietary intake. Malnourished children are also a problem in South Africa. Pre-schools play an important role in the prevention of malnutrition because most young children consume about two thirds of their food and therefore their daily nutritional intake at the pre-schools. There are various factors that affect a child's nutrition in pre-schools, such as food choices, meal plans, the environment and the nutritional knowledge of the caregivers. Pre-schools can only fulfill this responsibility through the proper nutritional knowledge and training. The nutritional education and knowledge of food service assistants/caregivers are very important, because they compile the meal plans and menus for pre-schools. The objectives of this study were to evaluate a Nutrition Education Programme (NEP) to address the lack of nutritional knowledge of service assistants/caregivers who plan the menus in pre-schools in terms of existing menu content and food choices required for children between two to five years of age and by using the existing menus and food choices applied to make recommendations for nutritional skills training. Also in terms of basic nutrition, health and safety, to recommend more appropriate alternatives acceptable to children between two to five years of age. Lastly to integrate recommendations for nutritional skill training with regard to the alternative meal plan, eating habits and food choices for the menu through a NEP that would be implemented and evaluated. The study design was a combination of an exploratory and quantitative-descriptive research design in the form of a survey. A pilot study was used mainly to test the nutrition knowledge questionnaires for content validity. The study population of this research project was randomly selected pre-schools chosen from the Eatonside informal settlement. Procedures for data gathering and the different methods used for data analysis were divided into four phases. Descriptive statistics were used to determine the percentage of pre-schools who answered the questions correctly for selected nutrition knowledge, portion sizes questions and menu planning, as well as food safety and health. Paired t-tests were carried out to measure the statistically significant difference (pS0.05) before and after the implementation of the NEP. The results of the t-test indicate that only nine of the questions in the post-test questionnaire showed a confidence interval of the difference. There is statistical significance in these questions through either increase or decrease. It can be concluded that the Nutrition Education Programme (NEP) was successful, but that more training is needed due to the limitations experienced. The menu analysis tested the respondent's menus in terms of the average daily nutrient intake level given to the pre-school children. The data of the pre- and post-test menus were then compared to EAR in order to determine any change in the menus nutritional values after the NEP was completed. The results showed that there were differences in the post-test results that both decreased and increased.