Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Original Article
  • Published:

Epidemiology

Increased sedentary behaviour is associated with unhealthy dietary patterns in European adolescents participating in the HELENA study

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 68, pages 300–308 (2014)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Background/Objectives:

To assess dietary patterns (DPs) in European adolescents and to examine their relationship with several indicators of sedentary behaviour.

Subjects/Methods:

A multinational cross-sectional study was carried out in 2202 adolescents (45.4% boys) aged 12.5–17.5 years. A self-reported questionnaire with information on sedentary behaviours, separately for weekdays and weekend days, and two non-consecutive 24 h-recalls were used. Principal component analysis was used to obtain DPs, and linear regression examined the association between DPs scores and sedentary behaviour.

Results:

Four DPs for boys (‘plant based’, ‘snacking’, ‘breakfast’ and ‘health conscious’) and five DPs for girls (‘confectionary and snacking’, ‘plant based’, ‘breakfast’, ‘animal protein’ and ‘health conscious’) were obtained. Boys who spent >4 h/day watching television (TV) had lower adherence to the ‘plant based’, ‘breakfast’ and ‘health conscious’ DPs, and higher adherence to the ‘snacking’ DP. Higher computer use and internet use for recreational reason were associated with higher adherence to the ‘snacking’ DP. In girls, TV viewing and using internet for recreational reasons for >4 h/day was associated with higher adherence to the ‘confectionary and snacking’ and lower adherence with ‘health conscious’ DP. Also, studying between 2 and 4 h during weekend days was associated with lower adherence to the ‘snacking’ and with higher adherence to the ‘plant based’ and ‘breakfast’ DPs.

Conclusion:

Adolescents’ DPs are related with the time spent in several sedentary behaviours. Such findings may help to generate interventions focusing on decreasing unhealthy dietary habits and specific sedentary behaviours.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Figure 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Hu FB . Dietary pattern analysis: a new direction in nutritional epidemiology. Curr Opin Lipidol 2002; 13: 3–9.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Craig LC, McNeill G, Macdiarmid JI, Masson LF, Holmes BA . Dietary patterns of school-age children in Scotland: association with socio-economic indicators, physical activity and obesity. Br J Nutr 2010; 103: 319–334.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Chaput JP, Klingenberg L, Astrup A, Sjodin AM . Modern sedentary activities promote overconsumption of food in our current obesogenic environment. Obes Rev 2010; 12: e12–e20.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Rennie KL, Johnson L, Jebb SA . Behavioural determinants of obesity. Best Pract Res Clin Endocrinol Metab 2005; 19: 343–358.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Santaliestra-Pasías AM, Mouratidou T, Verbestel V, Huybrechts I, Gottrand F, Le Donne C et al. Food consumption and screen-based sedentary behaviors in european adolescents: The helena study. Arch Pediatr Adoles Med 2012; 166: 1–11.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Biddle SJ, O'Connell S, Braithwaite RE . Sedentary behaviour interventions in young people: a meta-analysis. Br J Sports Med 2011; 45: 937–942.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Global Strategy on diet and Physical Activity. World Health Assembly 5717. World Health Organization: Geneva, 2004.

  8. Rey-Lopez JP, Vicente-Rodriguez G, Biosca M, Moreno LA . Sedentary behaviour and obesity development in children and adolescents. Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis 2008; 18: 242–251.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Moreno LA, Rodriguez G . Dietary risk factors for development of childhood obesity. Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care 2007; 10: 336–341.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Ottevaere C, Huybrechts I, Benser J, De Bourdeaudhuij I, Cuenca-Garcia M, Dallongeville J et al. Clustering patterns of physical activity, sedentary and dietary behavior among European adolescents: The HELENA study. BMC Public Health 2011; 11: 328.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Newby PK, Tucker KL . Empirically derived eating patterns using factor or cluster analysis: a review. Nutr Rev 2004; 62: 177–203.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Moreno LA, Gonzalez-Gross M, Kersting M, Molnar D, de Henauw S, Beghin L et al. Assessing, understanding and modifying nutritional status, eating habits and physical activity in European adolescents: the HELENA (Healthy Lifestyle in Europe by Nutrition in Adolescence) Study. Public Health Nutr 2008; 11: 288–299.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Moreno LA, De Henauw S, Gonzalez-Gross M, Kersting M, Molnar D, Gottrand F et al. Design and implementation of the Healthy Lifestyle in Europe by Nutrition in Adolescence Cross-Sectional Study. Int J Obes (Lond) 2008; 32 (Suppl 5), S4–S11.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Beghin L, Huybrechts I, Vicente-Rodriguez G, DEH S, Gottrand F, Gonzales-Gross M et al. Mains characteristics and participation rate of European adolescents included in the HELENA study. Arch Public Health 2012; 70: 14.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Beghin L, Castera M, Manios Y, Gilbert CC, Kersting M, De Henauw S et al. Quality assurance of ethical issues and regulatory aspects relating to good clinical practices in the HELENA Cross-Sectional Study. Int J Obes (Lond) 2008; 32 (Suppl 5), S12–S18.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Currie C, Molcho M, Boyce W, Holstein B, Torsheim T, Richter M . Researching health inequalities in adolescents: the development of the Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children (HBSC) family affluence scale. Soc Sci Med 2008; 66: 1429–1436.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Nagy E, Vicente-Rodriguez G, Manios Y, Beghin L, Iliescu C, Censi L et al. Harmonization process and reliability assessment of anthropometric measurements in a multicenter study in adolescents. Int J Obes (Lond) 2008; 32 (Suppl 5), S58–S65.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Cole TJ, Bellizzi MC, Flegal KM, Dietz WH . Establishing a standard definition for child overweight and obesity worldwide: international survey. BMJ 2000; 320: 1240–1243.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Tanner JM, Whitehouse RH . Clinical longitudinal standards for height, weight, height velocity, weight velocity, and stages of puberty. Arch Dis Child 1976; 51: 170–179.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Vereecken CA, Covents M, Sichert-Hellert W, Alvira JM, Le Donne C, De Henauw S et al. Development and evaluation of a self-administered computerized 24-h dietary recall method for adolescents in Europe. Int J Obes (Lond) 2008; 32 (Suppl 5), S26–S34.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Harttig U, Haubrock J, Knuppel S, Boeing H . The MSM program: web-based statistics package for estimating usual dietary intake using the Multiple Source Method. Eur J Clin Nutr 2011; 65 (Suppl 1), S87–S91.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Brussaard JH, Lowik MR, Steingrimsdottir L, Moller A, Kearney J, De Henauw S et al. A European food consumption survey method—conclusions and recommendations. Eur J Clin Nutr 2002; 56 (Suppl 2), S89–S94.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Rey-Lopez JP, Vicente-Rodriguez G, Ortega FB, Ruiz JR, Martinez-Gomez D, De Henauw S et al. Sedentary patterns and media availability in European adolescents: The HELENA study. Prev Med 2010; 51: 50–55.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. American Academy of Pediatrics. Children, adolescents, and television. Pediatrics 2001; 107: 423–426.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. Rey-Lopez JP, Ruiz JR, Ortega FB, Verloigne M, Vicente-Rodriguez G, Gracia-Marco L et al. Reliability and validity of a screen time-based sedentary behaviour questionnaire for adolescents: The HELENA study. Eur J Public Health 2011; 22: 373–377.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. Deshmukh-Taskar PR, O'Neil CE, Nicklas TA, Yang SJ, Liu Y, Gustat J et al. Dietary patterns associated with metabolic syndrome, sociodemographic and lifestyle factors in young adults: the Bogalusa Heart Study. Public Health Nutr 2009; 12: 2493–2503.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. Richter A, Heidemann C, Schulze MB, Roosen J, Thiele S, Mensink GB . Dietary patterns of adolescents in Germany - Associations with nutrient intake and other health related lifestyle characteristics. BMC Pediatr 2012; 12: 35.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  28. Charreire H, Kesse-Guyot E, Bertrais S, Simon C, Chaix B, Weber C et al. Associations between dietary patterns, physical activity (leisure-time and occupational) and television viewing in middle-aged French adults. Br J Nutr 2011; 105: 902–910.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  29. van Kooten M, de Ridder D, Vollebergh W, van Dorsselaer S . What's so special about eating? Examining unhealthy diet of adolescents in the context of other health-related behaviours and emotional distress. Appetite 2007; 48: 325–332.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Aranceta J, Perez-Rodrigo C, Ribas L, Serra-Majem L . Sociodemographic and lifestyle determinants of food patterns in Spanish children and adolescents: the enKid study. Eur J Clin Nutr 2003; 57 (Suppl 1), S40–S44.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  31. Bibiloni Mdel M, Martinez E, Llull R, Pons A, Tur JA . Western and Mediterranean dietary patterns among Balearic Islands' adolescents: socio-economic and lifestyle determinants. Public Health Nutr 2012; 15: 683–692.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. Rey-Lopez JP, Vicente-Rodriguez G, Repasy J, Mesana MI, Ruiz JR, Ortega FB et al. Food and drink intake during television viewing in adolescents: the Healthy Lifestyle in Europe by Nutrition in Adolescence (HELENA) study. Public Health Nutr 2011; 14: 1563–1569.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  33. Kiefte-de Jong JC, de Vries JH, Bleeker SE, Jaddoe VW, Hofman A, Raat H et al. Socio-demographic and lifestyle determinants of 'Western-like' and 'Health conscious' dietary patterns in toddlers. Br J Nutr 2012; 109: 1–11.

    Google Scholar 

  34. Moreira P, Santos S, Padrao P, Cordeiro T, Bessa M, Valente H et al. Food patterns according to sociodemographics, physical activity, sleeping and obesity in Portuguese children. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2010; 7: 1121–1138.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. Alexy U, Libuda L, Mersmann S, Kersting M . Convenience foods in children's diet and association with dietary quality and body weight status. Eur J Clin Nutr 2011; 65: 160–166.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  36. Okubo H, Sasaki S, Murakami K, Kim MK, Takahashi Y, Hosoi Y et al. Three major dietary patterns are all independently related to the risk of obesity among 3760 Japanese women aged 18-20 years. Int J Obes (Lond) 2008; 32: 541–549.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  37. Chapman CD, Benedict C, Brooks SJ, Schioth HB . Lifestyle determinants of the drive to eat: a meta-analysis. Am J Clin Nutr 2012; 96: 492–497.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

We thank all members of the study teams and especially the adolescents and their parents for their participation in the study. This work was carried out as part of the HELENA study (www.helenastudy.com/). We gratefully acknowledge the financial support of the European Community sixth RTD Framework Programme (Contract FOOD-CT-2005-007034). In addition the first author, AM Santaliestra-Pasías, received financial support by Fundación Cuenca Villoro (Spain) and M Cuenca-García received financial support by Spanish Ministry of Education (AP-2008-03806). The content of this article reflects only the authors’ views, and the European Community is not liable for any use that may be made of the information contained therein.

Author information

Author notes

  1. A M Santaliestra-Pasías, T Mouratidou, I Huybrechts, L Beghin, M Cuenca-García, M J Castillo, M Galfo, L Hallstrom, A Kafatos, Y Manios, A Marcos, D Molnar, M Plada, R Pedrero-Chamizo, K Widhalm, I De Bourdeaudhuij and L A Moreno: See Appendix.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. GENUD (Growth, Exercise, Nutrition and Development) Research Group, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain

    A M Santaliestra-Pasías, T Mouratidou & L A Moreno

  2. Department of Public Health, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium

    I Huybrechts

  3. International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), Dietary Exposure Assessment group (DEX), Lyon, France

    I Huybrechts

  4. Inserm U955, IFR 114/IMPRT, Faculty of Medicine, University Lille 2, Lille, France

    L Beghin

  5. CIC 9301-CH&U-Inserm of Lille, CHRU de Lille, Lille, France

    L Beghin

  6. Department of Medical Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Granada, Granada, Spain

    M Cuenca-García & M J Castillo

  7. National Research Institute for Food and Nutrition (INRAN), Rome, Italy

    M Galfo

  8. Department of Biosciences and Nutrition at NOVUM, Karolinska Institute, Huddinge, Sweden

    L Hallstrom

  9. Public Health Department, School of Health, Care and Social Welfare, Märlardalens University, Västeras, Sweden

    L Hallstrom

  10. Department of Social Medicine, Preventive Medicine and Nutrition Clinic, University of Crete, Heraklion, Greece

    A Kafatos & M Plada

  11. Argonafton 47, Ilioupolis, Athens, Greece

    A Kafatos

  12. Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Harakopio University, Athens, Greece

    Y Manios

  13. Department of Metabolism and Nutrition, Inmunonutrition Research Group, Instituto del Frío, Institute of Food Science and Technology an Nutrition (ICTAN), Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Madrid, Spain

    A Marcos

  14. Department of Pediatrics, Medical Faculty, University of Pécs, Pécs, Hungary

    D Molnar

  15. Department of Health and Human Performance, ImFINE Research Group, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Madrid, Spain

    R Pedrero-Chamizo

  16. Medical University of Vienna, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, Vienna, Austria

    K Widhalm

  17. Department of Movement and Sport Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium

    I De Bourdeaudhuij

Authors
  1. A M Santaliestra-Pasías
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. T Mouratidou
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. I Huybrechts
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. L Beghin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. M Cuenca-García
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. M J Castillo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. M Galfo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. L Hallstrom
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. A Kafatos
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  10. Y Manios
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  11. A Marcos
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  12. D Molnar
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  13. M Plada
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  14. R Pedrero-Chamizo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  15. K Widhalm
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  16. I De Bourdeaudhuij
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  17. L A Moreno
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Consortia

on behalf of the HELENA study group

Corresponding author

Correspondence to A M Santaliestra-Pasías.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Appendix

Appendix

Appendix HELENA Study Group

Co-ordinator: Luis A Moreno.

Core Group members: Luis A Moreno, Fréderic Gottrand, Stefaan De Henauw, Marcela González-Gross, Chantal Gilbert.

Steering Committee: Anthony Kafatos (President), Luis A Moreno, Christian Libersa, Stefaan De Henauw, Sara Castelló, Fréderic Gottrand, Mathilde Kersting, Michael Sjöstrom, Dénes Molnár, Marcela González-Gross, Jean Dallongeville, Chantal Gilbert, Gunnar Hall, Lea Maes, Luca Scalfi.

Project Manager: Pilar Meléndez.

Universidad de Zaragoza (Spain). Luis A Moreno, Jesús Fleta, José A Casajús, Gerardo Rodríguez, Concepción Tomás, María I Mesana, Germán Vicente-Rodríguez, Adoración Villarroya, Carlos M Gil, Ignacio Ara, Juan Revenga, Carmen Lachen, Juan Fernández Alvira, Gloria Bueno, Aurora Lázaro, Olga Bueno, Juan F León, Jesús Ma Garagorri, Manuel Bueno, Juan Pablo Rey López, Iris Iglesia, Paula Velasco, Silvia Bel, Luis A Gracia Marco, Theodora Mouratidou.

Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (Spain). Ascensión Marcos, Julia Wärnberg, Esther Nova, Sonia Gómez, Ligia Esperanza Díaz, Javier Romeo, Ana Veses, Belén Zapatera, Tamara Pozo, David Martínez.

Université de Lille 2 (France). Laurent Beghin, Christian Libersa, Frédéric Gottrand, Catalina Iliescu, Juliana Von Berlepsch.

Research Institute of Child Nutrition Dortmund, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn (Germany). Mathilde Kersting, Wolfgang Sichert-Hellert, Ellen Koeppen.

Pécsi Tudományegyetem (University of Pécs) (Hungary). Dénes Molnar, Eva Erhardt, Katalin Csernus, Katalin Török, Szilvia Bokor, Mrs Angster, Enikö Nagy, Orsolya Kovács, Judit Répasi.

University of Crete School of Medicine (Greece). Anthony Kafatos, Caroline Codrington, María Plada, Angeliki Papadaki, Katerina Sarri, Anna Viskadourou, Christos Hatzis, Michael Kiriakakis, George Tsibinos, Constantine Vardavas, Manolis Sbokos, Eva Protoyeraki, Maria Fasoulaki.

Institut für Ernährungs- und Lebensmittelwissenschaften—Ernährungphysiologie. Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms Universität (Germany). Peter Stehle, Klaus Pietrzik, Marcela González-Gross, Christina Breidenassel, Andre Spinneker, Jasmin Al-Tahan, Miriam Segoviano, Anke Berchtold, Christine Bierschbach, Erika Blatzheim, Adelheid Schuch, Petra Pickert.

University of Granada (Spain). Manuel J Castillo, Ángel Gutiérrez, Francisco B Ortega, Jonatan R Ruiz, Enrique G Artero, Vanesa España, David Jiménez-Pavón, Palma Chillón, Cristóbal Sánchez-Muñoz, Magdalena Cuenca.

Istituto Nazionalen di Ricerca per gli Alimenti e la Nutrizione (Italy). Davide Arcella, Elena Azzini, Emma Barrison, Noemi Bevilacqua, Pasquale Buonocore, Giovina Catasta, Laura Censi, Donatella Ciarapica, Paola D'Acapito, Marika Ferrari, Myriam Galfo, Cinzia Le Donne, Catherine Leclercq, Giuseppe Maiani, Beatrice Mauro, Lorenza Mistura, Antonella Pasquali, Raffaela Piccinelli, Angela Polito, Raffaella Spada, Stefania Sette, Maria Zaccaria.

University of Napoli ‘Federico II’ Dept of Food Science (Italy). Luca Scalfi, Paola Vitaglione, Concetta Montagnese.

Ghent University (Belgium). Ilse De Bourdeaudhuij, Stefaan De Henauw, Tineke De Vriendt, Lea Maes, Christophe Matthys, Carine Vereecken, Mieke de Maeyer, Charlene Ottevaere, Inge Huybrechts.

Medical University of Vienna (Austria). Kurt Widhalm, Katharina Phillipp, Sabine Dietrich, Birgit Kubelka, Marion Boriss-Riedl.

Harokopio University (Greece). Yannis Manios, Eva Grammatikaki, Zoi Bouloubasi, Tina Louisa Cook, Sofia Eleutheriou, Orsalia Consta, George Moschonis, Ioanna Katsaroli, George Kraniou, Stalo Papoutsou, Despoina Keke, Ioanna Petraki, Elena Bellou, Sofia Tanagra, Kostalenia Kallianoti, Dionysia Argyropoulou, Katerina Kondaki, Stamatoula Tsikrika, Christos Karaiskos.

Institut Pasteur de Lille (France). Jean Dallongeville, Aline Meirhaeghe.

Karolinska Institutet (Sweden). Michael Sjöstrom, Jonatan R Ruiz, Francisco B Ortega, María Hagströmer, Anita Hurtig Wennlöf, Lena Hallström, Emma Patterson, Lydia Kwak, Julia Wärnberg, Nico Rizzo.

Asociación de Investigación de la Industria Agroalimentaria (Spain). Jackie Sánchez-Molero, Sara Castelló, Elena Picó, Maite Navarro, Blanca Viadel, José Enrique Carreres, Gema Merino, Rosa Sanjuán, María Lorente, María José Sánchez.

Campden BRI (United Kingdom). Chantal Gilbert, Sarah Thomas, Elaine Allchurch, Peter Burgess.

SIK - Institutet foer Livsmedel och Bioteknik (Sweden). Gunnar Hall, Annika Astrom, Anna Sverkén, Agneta Broberg.

Meurice Recherche & Development asbl (Belgium). Annick Masson, Claire Lehoux, Pascal Brabant, Philippe Pate, Laurence Fontaine.

Campden & Chorleywood Food Development Institute (Hungary). Andras Sebok, Tunde Kuti, Adrienn Hegyi.

Productos Aditivos SA (Spain). Cristina Maldonado, Ana Llorente.

Cárnicas Serrano SL (Spain). Emilio García.

Cederroth International AB (Sweden). Holger von Fircks, Marianne Lilja Hallberg, Maria Messerer.

Lantmännen Food R&D (Sweden). Mats Larsson, Helena Fredriksson, Viola Adamsson, Ingmar Börjesson.

European Food Information Council (Belgium). Laura Fernández, Laura Smillie, Josephine Wills.

Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (Spain). Marcela González-Gross, Jara Valtueña, David Jiménez-Pavón, Ulrike Albers, Raquel Pedrero, Agustín Meléndez, Pedro J Benito, Juan José Gómez Lorente, David Cañada, Alejandro Urzanqui, Rosa María Torres, Paloma Navarro.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Santaliestra-Pasías, A., Mouratidou, T., Huybrechts, I. et al. Increased sedentary behaviour is associated with unhealthy dietary patterns in European adolescents participating in the HELENA study. Eur J Clin Nutr 68, 300–308 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2013.170

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2013.170

Keywords

This article is cited by

Search

Advanced search

Quick links