Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Understanding Eating Behaviors of New Dehli's Youth

2016; Children at Risk; Volume: 6; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês

10.58464/2155-5834.1265

2155-5834

Melissa B. Harrell, José Eriberto Cifuentes Medina, Blanche Greene-Cramer, Shreela V. Sharma, Monika Arora, Gaurang P. Nazar,

Global Public Health Policies and Epidemiology

This qualitative study documents perceived benefits of and barriers to engaging in healthy eating behaviors among adolescents in New Delhi, India. Researchers explored factors that influenced the consumption of breakfast, fruits and vegetables, and soft drinks in this population and adolescents' ideas about how to intervene to encourage or discourage, respectively, these behaviors. Students (n=151 6th and 8th graders) from five private schools participated in focus group discussions. Findings showed that the majority of youth eat breakfast that may consist of traditional and Western choices. Despite sound knowledge of the benefits of fruits and vegetables consumption, adolescents do not eat the recommended daily servings due to flavor preferences. Soft drink consumption was, reportedly, universal. Several factors influenced these decisions and details are herein provided. The paucity of studies on this subject provides researchers with the opportunity to explore how eating patterns of Indian youth might be shaping the health and disease landscape of India in the upcoming decades. The study adds to the slim body of literature on the subject and could be used to inform future nutrition interventions in India.