ABSTRACT
Food environments is described as ‘the collective physical, economic, policy and socio-cultural surroundings, opportunities and conditions that influence people’s food and beverage choices and nutritional status. This study assessed the impact of personal and external food environment on food consumption pattern and anthropometry of workers in Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, Abia State. Cross-sectional descriptive survey design was adopted for the study. Multi-stage sampling techniques was used to select 344 respondents from ten (10) colleges of the university. Data was collected from the respondents with the use of a well-structured and validated questionnaire. The anthropometry assessment of the respondents was done measuring their weight, height, waist circumference, hip circumference, using the measurement to determine their respective BMI and waist-hip ratio comparing them with reference standard. The data collected was analysed using Statistical Package Service Software (SPSS) version 23.0. Descriptive statistics (frequency table) and inferential statistics (chi-square and regression analysis) was used to analyse the data collected. The result of the analysis was presented in frequency and percentage, p-value (P<0.05) was statistically accepted. Findings of the study showed that about 40.7% of the respondents were within the ages of 32-38years. Less than half(45.9%) were academic staff, 27.9% of the respondents were senior non-academic staff and 26.2% were junior staff of the university. About 49.4% of the respondents earn between N60, 000-N119, 999 as monthly income. Some of the respondents claimed that restaurants and buka/mama put was the food outlet available in their place of workand more than half of them claimed that confectionaries and cooked meal are foods that were available in their work place. Less than half (48.8%) of the respondents always have access to food outlets in their work place and it takes them 10 minutes to get to the location of the food outlets. Most of the food available in the food outlets was purchased by the respondents and they had moderate and high desirability of the food available for them. The food that was most consumed by the respondents was the staple food that was readily available in the work place of the respondents.However, the prevalence of overweight found in the study among the respondents was 28.5% and 34.0% of the respondent were obese. More than half (53.2%) of the respondents were high risk of developing central obesity and other health issues while 46.8% were not at risk. Findings of the study further showed that there is no significant relationship anthropometric (BMI) and some food consumed by the respondents. Lastly, Findings of the study showed that food outlet available in work and accessibility of food outlet in work place have impact on food consumed which implies that both external and personal food environment have effect on the food consumed.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TITLE PAGE I
CERTIFICATION II
DEDICATION III
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS IV
TABLE OF CONTENTS V
LIST OF TABLES IX
ABSTRACT X
CHAPTER
1: INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background
of the Study 1
1.2 Statement
of the Problem 3
1.3
Objectives of the Study 5
1.3.1 Specific
objectives 5
1.4 Significance
of the Study 5
CHAPTER
2: LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Concept
of food environment 7
2.2 Types
of environmental influence on food choice 8
2.1.1 Individual level factor 8
2.1.2 Social
environment 10
2.1.3 Physical
environment 11
2.1.4 Macro-environment 13
2.2 How the
food environment affects consumption 16
2.2.1 Availability 16
2.2.2 Affordability 19
2.2.3 Accessibility 22
CHAPTER 3: MATERIALS AND METHODS
3.1 Study
Design 25
3.2 Study
Area 25
3.3 Population
of the Study 26
3.4
Sampling and Sample Size 26
3.4.1 Sample
Size determination 26
3.4.2 Sampling
technique 28
3.5
Preliminary Activities 28
3.5.1 Informed
Consent 28
3.5.1 Training
of the Research Assistant 29
3.5.2 Ethical
Approval 29
3.6
Data Collection 29
3.6.1 Questionnaire administration 29
3.6.2 Anthropometric
measurements 30
3.6.2.1 Height measurement 30
3.6.2.2 Weight measurement 30
3.6.2.3 Hip Circumference (HC) 31
3.6.2.4 Waist Circumference (WC) 31
3.6.3 Dietary
assessment 31
3.6.3.1 Food
frequency questionnaire (FFQ) 31
3.7 Data
Analysis 32
3.8 Statistical
Analysis 33
CHAPTER 4: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
4.1 Socio-Demographic
Characteristics of the respondents 34
4.2 External
food environment of the respondents 36
4.3 Personal
food environment of the respondents 39
4.3b Personal
food environment of the respondents 42
4.4 Food
consumption pattern of the respondents 45
4.5 Anthropometric
status of the respondents 48
4.6 Impact
of external food environment on food consumption of the respondents 51
4.7 Impact
of external food environment on food consumption of the respondents 52
4.8 Relationship
between anthropometric status and food consumption of the
respondents 53
CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION AND RECOMENDATION
5.1 Conclusion 55
5.2 Recommendation 56
REFERENCES 57
APPENDIX 64
LIST OF TABLES
Table Page
3.1:
The International classification of adult underweight, overweight and
obesity
according to BMI 32
3.2:
World Health Organization cut-off points and risk of metabolic
complications 32
3.3:
Waist-hip ratio (WHR) classification 33
4.1:
Socio-demographic characteristics of the respondents 35
4.2:External
food environment of the respondents 38
4.3a:Personal
food environment of the respondents 41
4.3b:Personal
food environment of the respondents 44
4.4:Food
consumption pattern of the respondents 47
4.5:Anthropometric
characteristics of the respondents 50
4.6:Impact
of external food environment on food consumption of the
respondents 51
4.7:Impact
of personal food environment on food consumption of the
respondents 52
4.8: Relationship between anthropometric status
and food consumption of the
respondents 54
CHAPTER
1
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
According
to FAO/IFAD/UNICEF/WFP/WHO (2019), urbanization, income shifts, work and
lifestyle patterns have simultaneously produced an increase in overweight and
obesity across all regions. This change has had an impact upon dietary
behaviors and the development of chronic non-infectious diseases, including,
coronary heart disease (CHD), cerebrovascular disease, various cancers and
diabetes mellitus (FAO/IFAD/UNICEF/WFP/WHO, 2019). This growing urban
population due to the nature of their work and their time schedules tend to
adopt dietary consumption patterns such as convenient or fast foods consumption
characterized by animal products, fats, sugar and salt
(FAO/IFAD/UNICEF/WFP/WHO, 2017). This nutrition transition is characterized by
a rapid shift in dietary intake from traditional, diverse and balanced diets
towards more ‘westernized’ diets, specifically
high consumption of ‘harmful’ foods and low consumption of ‘protective’
foods (Mehio et al., 2010; Afshin et al., 2015). This pattern is
associated with globalization and urbanization factors but also an increasingly
sedentary lifestyle and the combination of these trends leads to shifts away
from infectious diseases towards diet-related diseases (Steyn and Mchiza, 2014;
Popkin, 2017).
Food
consumption patterns could be seen as the recognizable ways of eating foods. It
can be defined as that aspect of a lifestyle (or livelihood) that relates to
the nature and amount of the different foods that the household considers
adequate for fulfilling their needs (Ogunniyi, 2012).Literature suggests that
consumption patterns change over time, the major cause for such changes is the
development in technology (Ogunniyi, 2012; Igumbor et al., 2012; Puoane et al.,
2012). Kandala and Stranges (2014) observed that the prevalence of overweight
and obesity varies across ethnic groups and the state of residence in Nigeria.
These might be signaling a “nutrition transition”, the shift in dietary
consumption and energy expenditure that coincides with economic, demographic,
and epidemiological changes (Mekonnen et
al., 2019). Culture and socio economic status of the population influence
food choices and pattern of consumption (Mekonnen et al., 2019). Consequently consumption of some food items is
likely to vary according to season and often based on availability and price,
education and income have been shown to be important determinants in food
intake (Olayiwola et al., 2004;
Nihar, 2009).
Food
environments may be defined in terms of geographic access to food in a
community or neighborhood, consumer experiences inside food outlets, services
and infrastructure in institutional settings, or the information available
about food (Glanz et al., 2005; Falbe
et al., 2015). It can also be seen as
the
interface that mediates the acquisition of foods to people within the wider
food system (Turner et al., 2017).
Community food environments most closely fit within the area of environmental
health practice known as “health and the built environment” (Provincial Health
Services Authority, 2014).Food environment research has predominantly been
influenced by foundational articulation of the ‘community nutrition
environment’, comprised of the number, type, location and accessibility of food
outlets, and the ‘consumer nutrition environment’, including what consumers
encounter, such as availability, cost and quality of healthful food choices
(Glanz et al., 2007; Minaker et al., 2011).
Food environments consist of the
collective physical, economic, policy and socio-cultural surroundings,
opportunities and conditions which create everyday prompts, shaping people’s
dietary preferences and choices as well as nutritional status (Swinburn et al., 2014; Hawkes, 2015).
Key dimensions of food environments
include food availability, accessibility, affordability, desirability and
convenience, as well as vendor and product properties, and promotional
information (Herforth and Ahmed, 2015; Turner et al., 2017). Some frameworks have built on existing conceptual
work by mapping these dimensions to personal and external food environment
domains, reflecting the reality that food acquisition is the result of complex
socio-ecological interactions between people and their wider environment (Glanz
et al., 2007; Turner et al., 2017).
Education
is the key to the development of people and society. It is through education
that individuals’, groups’ and the nations’ worth and potentials are realized (Turner et al., 2017). Education have been seen
to play a significant role in the modification of people’s attitude, perception
and knowledge towards food and nutrition which have influence on optimum health
(Puoane et al., 2012).
Personal
food environment is a personal domain that includes a set of individual level
of dimensions, including food accessibility, affordability, convenience and
desirability. The food environment is the interface that mediates people’s food
acquisition and consumption within the wider food system (FAO, 2016).
The
external food environment domain relates to the world of opportunities and
constraints that are out there within a given context, and includes exogenous
dimensions such as food availability, prices, vendor and product properties,
and marketing and regulation (Caspi et
al., 2012). The personal food environment domain includes a set of
endogenous dimensions, including food accessibility, affordability, convenience
and desirability, however, both the external and personal domain have impact in
food environment (Caspi et al.,
2012).
1.2 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
Food
environments is described as ‘the collective physical, economic, policy and
socio-cultural surroundings, opportunities and conditions that influence
people’s food and beverage choices and nutritional status’ (Swinburn et al., 2013). Over the past three
decades there has been a nutrition transition in sub-Sahara African countries
characterized by over-nutrition (overweight and obesity) especially among
sedentary workers, coupled with the existing high levels of under-nutrition as
a result of the ever increasing poverty rate in this region (WHO, 2014).
The
food environment in Nigeria has changed rapidly since the mid-1990s, perhaps
driven by an influx of trade and foreign direct investment by large and
transnational food and beverage industries, as well as an ever growing market
share by supermarket retailers and fast food chains (Weatherspoon and Reardon,
2003; Igumbor et al., 2012; Puoane et al., 2012). One serious consequence
of this nutrition transition is the global increase in overweight and obesity (Steyn
and McHiza, 2014). This change has contributed to making processed foods, more
available, affordable and acceptable to all sectors of the Nigerian population,
and has been related tochanging dietary patterns and contributing to
overweight, obesity and non-communicable diseases (NCDs) (Igumbor et al., 2012).World Health Organization
(WHO) estimations globally indicates over 1.9 billion adults 18 years and above
are overweight and over 650 million are obese (WHO, 2018). The prevalence of
obesity in the world has tripled since 1975 (WHO, 2018).
The
relationship between obesity and certain sedentary behaviors, such as screen
viewing, has been analyzed in the literature (Hu et al., 2003; Proper et al.,
2011; Heinonen et al., 2013). However,
most of the previous research has been limited to leisure-time behaviors. Work
is a major domain of life for many adults, and lack of information on sedentary
behaviors in the workplace limits the understanding of potential causes of the
obesity problem. Whether sedentariness at work leads to weight gain has
received some attention (Brown et al.,
2003; Mummery et al., 2005; Choi et al., 2010; Church et al., 2011; Chau et al., 2012). It is in view of this identified problem that this
study seeks to assess the impact of personal and external food environment on
food consumption pattern and anthropometry of workers in Michael Okpara
University of Agriculture, Umudike.
1.3 OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY
The
general objective of the study is to assess the impact of personal and external
food environment on food consumption pattern and anthropometry of workers in
Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike.
1.3.1 Specific objectives of the study
The
specific objectives of the study are to:
i.
assess the socio-economic status of the respondents
ii.
identify the personal and external food
environment of the respondents
iii.
assess the food consumption pattern of
respondents
iv.
determine the anthropometric status of the
respondents
v.
determine the impact of external food
environment on the food consumption of the respondents
vi.
determine the impact of personal food
environment on the food consumption of the respondents
1.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
Findings
from this study will have both theoretical and practical implication. In theory
this study will benefit the academia in that it will serve as a reference
material for future research in similar or related area. This study will
benefit the university workers in particular and others in general as it will
expose implicit and explicit food environment factors impacting the food habits
and food consumption patterns of university workers and their anthropometric
status as this will aid them make informed food choices for consumption and
build healthy dietary habits and lifestyles.. Findings will also benefit the
University management as it will provide them with useful information on which
to act on to improve the welfare of its staff. Results of this study will
direct both government and other non-governmental organizations toward actions
that will help to foster both health and nutrition of workers.
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