Stress eating: an online survey of eating behaviours, comfort foods, and healthy food substitutes in German adults.

BACKGROUND: In many people, stress is associated with changes in eating behaviour. Food products consumed during stress (comfort foods) are often unhealthy. It is rather unknown what comfort foods are consumed in Germany and what healthier food products are considered as alternatives to support stress-eaters in making healthier food choices. METHODS: This online survey was conducted in spring 2021 throughout Germany. Participants were digitally recruited by newsletters, homepages, social media, and mailing lists. The survey included a standardized questionnaire with items concerning e.g. sociodemography, stress, and nutrition. Comfort foods were pre-selected through literature search and food substitutes were defined and discussed by experts. Analyses examined comfort food consumption and substitute preferences dependent on sex, age, body mass index (BMI), and being a self-identified stress-eater. The statistical analysis was performed using R. RESULTS: Survey participants were mostly female (80.6%, 994/1234), had a mean age of 31.4 ± 12.8 years and a mean BMI of 23.4 ± 4.3 kg/m2. Participants stated, that the two favourite comfort foods were chocolate (consumed often/very often by 48.3%, 596/1234) and coffee (consumed often/very often by 45.9%, 566/1234). Regarding food substitutes, the most frequently named alternative food for chocolate and cookies was fresh fruits (for chocolate: 74.4%, 815/1096, for cookies: 62.6%, 565/902). Tea without added sugar (64.4%, 541/840) was the preferred substitute for coffee. Almost 50% of participants (48.1%, 594/1234) identified themselves as stress-eaters, of which 68.9% (408/592) stated to eat (very) often more than usual in subjective stress situations. CONCLUSIONS: The results from this work suggest that specific comfort foods and substitutes are preferred by the participants in stressful situations. This knowledge about food choices and substitutes should be investigated in further studies to improve eating behaviour in stressful situations. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The survey was registered in the German Register of Clinical Studies (Registration number: DRKS00023984 ).

A new FFQ designed to measure the intake of fatty acids and antioxidants in children.

OBJECTIVE: The present paper describes the systematic development of an FFQ to assess the intake of fatty acids and antioxidants in school-aged children. In addition, a validation study applying 24 h dietary recalls was performed. DESIGN: Using the variance-based Max_r method, a list of eighty-two foods was compiled from data obtained by 3 d weighed dietary records. The foods were used to design an FFQ, the comprehensibility of which was evaluated in a feasibility study. In addition, the FFQ was validated in a subset of 101 children from the German Infant Nutritional Intervention Study (GINI PLUS) against one 24 h dietary recall. RESULTS: The feasibility study attested a good acceptance of the FFQ. Mean intake of foods compared well between the FFQ and the 24 h dietary recall, although intake data generated from the FFQ tended to be higher. This difference became less apparent at the nutrient level, although the estimated average consumption of arachidonic acid and EPA using the FFQ still exceeded values recorded with the 24 h recall method by 45 % and 29 %, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: On the basis of the systematic selection process of the food list, the established practicability of the FFQ and the overall plausibility of the results, the use of this FFQ is justified in future epidemiological studies.

Food balance sheet and household budget survey dietary data and mortality patterns in Europe.

Worldwide dietary data for nutrition monitoring and surveillance are commonly derived from food balance sheets (FBS) and household budget surveys (HBS). We have compared food supply from FBS and food availability data from HBS among eighteen European countries and have estimated the extent to which they correlate, focusing on food groups which are comparably captured by FBS and HBS and for which there is epidemiological evidence that they can have a noticeable impact on population mortality. Spearman's correlation coefficient was +0.78 (P < 10- 3) for vegetables (including legumes),+0.76 (P < 10- 3) for fruits, +0.69 (P < 10- 3) for fish and seafood and +0.93 (P < 10- 3) for olive oil. With respect to meat and meat products, the coefficient was lower at +0.39 (P = 0.08). Moreover, we have examined whether the supply (FBS) or the availability (HBS) of food groups known or presumed to have beneficial effect on the occurrence of CHD and total cancer can predict overall, coronary and cancer mortality in ecological analyses. After controlling for purchasing power parity-adjusted gross domestic product and tobacco smoking we found that for vegetables, fruits, fish and seafood, as well as for olive oil, both the FBS and the HBS estimates were inversely associated with all three indicators of mortality, although the number of countries with complete information on all study variables hindered formal statistical documentation (P>0.05 in some instances). FBS and HBS have their own strengths and weaknesses, but they may complement each other in dietary assessments at the population level.