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Ten-year trends of dietary intake in a middle-aged French population: relationship with educational level

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 56, pages 393–401 (2002)Cite this article

Abstract

Objective: To compare dietary intakes at a 10 y interval of a population aged 35–64 living in France. Trends in nutrient intake and food consumption were examined with a special emphasis on the relationships between educational level and dietary behaviour.

Design: Two independent surveys conducted in 1985–1987 (S1) and 1995–1997 (S2) in the framework of the WHO MONICA project. Dietary intake was assessed with a 3-day record method and a food frequency questionnaire. The samples analysed included 416 men and 446 women for S1, 393 men and 409 women for S2.

Results: A significant improvement of the quality of fat intake was observed between S1 and S2, independently of educational level, with an increase of the age adjusted P/S ratio from 0.42 to 0.50 in men (P=10−4) and from 0.41 to 0.50 in women (P=10−4), whereas the daily cholesterol intake dropped from 552.0 to 466.9 mg and from 447.2 to 384.6 mg in men and women, respectively (P=10−4). These variations were associated with a decrease in the consumption of high-fat foods and an increase in that of low-fat products (poultry, low-fat dairy foods, fish) in all educational classes. By contrast, the consumption of fruit and vegetables, which was highly associated with educational level, varied little over time.

Conclusions: Our results indicate slight improvement in fat quality, independently of educational level, while fruit and vegetable intake, which appeared more dependent on educational level, was only poorly modified over the 10 y interval.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the Centre d'Examen de Santé de Strasbourg and the Centre d'Examen de Santé de Sélestat for their logistic support. The WHO-MONICA studies developed in France were supported by grants from the Caisse Primaire d'Assurance Maladie de Sélestat, the Réseau National de Santé Publique, the Direction Générale de la Santé, the Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM). The nutritional surveys have received grants from: the Ministére de la Recherche (Aliment, 2000), ASTRA-CALVE, CIDIL and LESIEUR.

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  1. AE Perrin and C Simon: Guarantors: AE Perrin, C Simon.

  2. AE Perrin, C Simon, G Hedelin, D Arveiler, P Schaffer and JL Schlienger: Contributors: AE Perrin, C Simon, G Hedelin, D Arveiler, P Schaffer, JL Schlienger.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Groupe d'Etudes sur la Nutrition, Hôpitaux Universitaires de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France

    AE Perrin, C Simon & JL Schlienger

  2. Laboratoire d'Epidémiologie et de Santé Publique, Faculté de Médecine, Strasbourg, France

    G Hedelin, D Arveiler & P Schaffer

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  1. AE Perrin
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Correspondence to C Simon.

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Perrin, A., Simon, C., Hedelin, G. et al. Ten-year trends of dietary intake in a middle-aged French population: relationship with educational level. Eur J Clin Nutr 56, 393–401 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ejcn.1601322

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