Skip to main content
Log in

Family and Friend Influences on Fruit and Vegetable Intake in Elementary Aged Children

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Journal of Community Health Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the eating behaviors and social cognitive factors that affect fruit and vegetable consumption. Strategies to change, pros & cons, enjoyment, family support, and peer influence were measured in children ages 8–10 years both pre- and post- Zest Quest® program (pre: n = 82; post: n = 80). Children for a comparison group were selected from comparable elementary schools and pre- and post- measures were evaluated (pre: n = 92; post: n = 87). Chi-squared analyses were conducted on individual measures and Spearman correlations & linear regression were used for composite variables with fruit and vegetable consumption as the dependent variable. Results from the study demonstrated significant moderate correlations for fruit change strategies pre- (rs = 0.39) and post-intervention (rs = 0.33) and vegetable change strategies pre-intervention (rs = 0.42) in the Zest Quest® group. Peer influence (rs = 0.33) and enjoyment (rs = 0.38) showed significant moderate correlations with fruit intake in the comparison group. The regression analysis showed pros (β = 0.24, p value 0.05) and cons (β = 0.14, p value 0.05) to be significant predictors for fruit intake post-intervention in the Zest Quest® group. Prior to the intervention, strategies to change (β = 0.10, p value 0.02) was a significant predictor for fruit intake and cons (β = 0.15, p value = 0.03) for vegetable intake in this group. Family support and peer influence were not significant in the regression models, but demonstrated significance in the crude model. Eating behaviors and social cognitive factors may have an effect on fruit and vegetable consumption, but these measures are difficult to capture. Future research should continue exploring the impact of family support and peer influence on fruit and vegetable intake.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Forum on Child and Family Statistics. (2015). Diet quality. Retrieved from http://www.childstats.gov/americaschildren/health6.asp.

  2. Ogden, C. L., Carroll, M. D., Kit, B. K., & Flegal, K. M. (2014). Prevalence of childhood and adult obesity in the United States, 2011–2012. Journal of the American Medical Association, 311(8), 806–814. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2014.732.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Kirby, E. (2012). Overweight and obesity: South Carolina state nutrition, physical activity, and obesity profile. Nutrition Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Promotion, Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity. Retrieved from: https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/stateprograms/fundedstates/pdf/south-carolina-state-profile.pdf.

  4. U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2010). Dietary guidelines for Americans (7th edn.). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.

    Google Scholar 

  5. Salvy, S. J., Haye, K., Bowker, J. C., & Hermans, R. C. J. (2012). Influence of peers and friends on children’s and adolescents’ eating and activity behaviors. Physiological Behavior, 106(3), 369–378. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physbeh.2012.03.022.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Story, M., French, S., & Neumark-Sztainer, D. (2002). Individual and environmental influences on adolescent eating behavior. Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 102(3), 40–51.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Birch, L. L. (1980). Effects of peer models’ food choices and eating behaviors on preschoolers’ food preferences. Child Development, 51(2), 489–496. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8624.ep12329661.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Patrick, H., & Nicklas, T. A. (2005). A review of family and social determinants of children’s eating patterns and diet quality. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 24(2), 83–92. https://doi.org/10.1080/07315724.2005.10719448.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Neumark-Sztainer, D., Hannan, P. J., Story, M., Croll, J., & Perry, C. (2003). Family meal patterns: Associations with sociodemographic characteristics and improved dietary intake among adolescents. Journal of the American Diet Association, 103(3), 317–322.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Cullen, K. W., Baranowski, T., Owens, E., Marsh, T., Rittenberry, L., & de Moor, C. (2003). Availability, accessibility, and preferences for fruit, 100% fruit juice, and vegetables influence children’s dietary behavior. Health Education & Behavior, 30(5), 615–626. https://doi.org/10.1177/1090198103257254.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Pedersen, S., Gronhoj, A., & Thogersen, J. (2015). Following family or friends. Social norms in adolescent healthy eating. Appetite, 86, 54–60. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2014.07.030.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Feunekes, G. I. J., de Graaf, C., Meyboom, S., & van Staveren, W. A. (1998). Food choice and fat intake of adolescents and adults: Associations of intakes within social networks. Preventive Medicine, 27(5), 645–656.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Bruening, M., Eisenberg, M., MacLehose, R., Nanney, M. S., Story, M., & Neumark-Sztainer, D. (2012). Relationship between adolescents’ and their friends’ eating behaviors: Breakfast, fruit, vegetable, whole-grain, and dairy intake. Journal of Academic Nutrition and Diet, 112(10), 1608–1613. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jand.2012.07.008.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. The Youth Learning Institute (2018). Educating and helping children achieve & maintain healthy lifestyles. Zest Quest. Retrieved from: http://www.zestquest.org/.

  15. Hagler, A. S., Norman, G. J., Radick, L. R., Calfas, K. J., & Sallis, J. F. (2005). Comparability and reliability of paper- and computer-based measures of psychosocial constructs for adolescent fruit and vegetable and dietary fat intake. Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 105(11), 1758–1764.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Kharofa, R. Y., Kalkwarf, H. J., Khoury, J. C., & Copeland, K. A. (2016). Are mealtime best practice guidelines for child care centers associated with energy, vegetable, and fruit intake? Child Obesity, 12(1), 52–58. https://doi.org/10.1089/chi.2015.0109.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Pearson, N., Biddle, S. J. H., & Gorely, T. (2009). Family correlates of fruit and vegetable consumption in children and adolescents: A systematic review. Public Health Nutrition, 12(2), 267–283. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1368980008002589.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Rasmussen, M., Krolner, R., Klepp, K. I., Lytle, L., Brug, J., Bere, E., & Due, P. (2006). Determinants of fruit and vegetable consumption among children and adolescents: a review of the literature. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, 3(22), 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1186/1479-5868-3-22.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Videon, T. M., & Manning, C. K. (2003). Influences on adolescent eating patterns: The importance of family meals. Journal of Adolescent Health, 32(5), 365–373. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1054-139X(02)00711-5.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  20. Lieberman, M., Gauvin, L., Bukowski, W. M., & White, D. R. (2001). Interpersonal influence and disordered eating behaviors in adolescent girls: The role of peer modeling, social reinforcement, and body-related teasing. Eating Behaviors, 2(3), 215–236. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1471-0153(01)00030-7.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Funding

The Zest Quest® evaluation was supported by a grant from The Cliffs Communities, Inc.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Brian C. Helsel.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report.

Additional information

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Helsel, B.C., Liang, J., Williams, J.E. et al. Family and Friend Influences on Fruit and Vegetable Intake in Elementary Aged Children. J Community Health 44, 932–940 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-019-00640-x

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-019-00640-x

Keywords

Navigation