Sugar tax and product reformulation proposals reduce the perceived legitimacy of health-promotion institutions: a randomized population-based survey experiment.

BACKGROUND: Structural nutrition interventions like a sugar tax or a product reformulation are strongly supported among the public health community but may cause a considerable backlash (e.g. inspiring aversion to institutions initiating the interventions among citizens). Such a backlash potentially undermines future health-promotion strategies. This study aims to uncover whether such backlash exists. METHODS: We fielded a pre-registered randomized, population-based survey experiment among adults from the Longitudinal Internet Studies for the Social Sciences panel (n = 1765; based on a random sampling of the Dutch population register). Participants were randomly allocated to the control condition (brief facts about health-information provision/nudging), or one of two experimental groups (the same facts, expanded with either a proposed sugar tax on or reformulation of sugar-sweetened beverages). Ordinary least squares regression was used to estimate the proposed interventions' effects on four outcome variables: trust in health-promotion institutions involved; perceptions that these institutions have citizens' well-being in mind (i.e. benevolence); perceptions that these institutions' perspectives are similar to those of citizens (i.e. alignment of perspectives); and attitudes toward nutrition information. RESULTS: Trust, perceived benevolence and perceived alignment of perspectives were affected negatively by a proposed sugar tax (-0.24, 95% CI -0.38 to -0.10; -0.15, -0.29 to -0.01; -0.15, -0.30 to 0.00) or product reformulation (-0.32, -0.46 to -0.18; -0.24, -0.37 to -0.11; -0.18, 0.33 to -0.03), particularly among the non-tertiary educated respondents. CONCLUSIONS: Sugar taxes or product reformulations may delegitimize health-promotion institutions, potentially causing public distancing from or opposition to these bodies. This may be exploited by political and commercial parties to undermine official institutions. TRIAL REGISTRATION: https://osf.io/qr9jy/?view_only=5e2e875a1fc348f3b28115b7a3fdfd90. Registered 3 February 2022.

Trajectories of socioeconomic inequality in early child development: a cohort analysis.

BACKGROUND: Addressing socioeconomic inequalities in early child development (ECD) is key to reducing the intergenerational transmission of health inequalities. Yet, little is known about how socioeconomic inequalities in ECD develop over the course of childhood. Our study aimed to describe how inequalities in ECD by maternal education develop from infancy to middle childhood. METHODS: We used data from Generation R, a prospective population-based cohort study in The Netherlands. Language skills were measured at ages 1, 1.5, 2, 3, and 4 years, using the Minnesota Child Development Inventory. Socioemotional (i.e. internalizing and externalizing) problems were measured at ages 1.5, 3, 5 and 9 years using the Child Behavior Checklist. We estimated inequalities in language skills and socioemotional problems across the above-mentioned ages, using linear mixed models with standardized scores at each wave. We used maternal education as indicator of socioeconomic position. RESULTS: Children of less educated mothers had more reported internalizing (B = 0.72, 95%CI = 0.51;0.95) and externalizing (B = 0.25, 95%CI = 0.10;0.40) problems at age 1.5 years, but better (caregiver reported) language skills at 1 year (B = 0.50, 95%CI = 0.36;0.64) than children of high educated mothers. Inequalities in internalizing and externalizing problems decreased over time. Inequalities in language scores reversed at age 2, and by the time children were 4 years old, children of less educated mothers had substantially lower language skills than children of high educated mothers (B = -0.38, 95%CI = -0.61;-0.15). CONCLUSIONS: Trajectories of socioeconomic inequality in ECD differ by developmental domain: whereas inequalities in socioemotional development decreased over time, inequalities increased for language development. Children of less educated mothers are at a language disadvantage even before entering primary education, providing further evidence that early interventions are needed.

Moderators of an intervention on emotional and behavioural problems: household- and school-level parental education.

BACKGROUND: Children of lower-educated parents and children in schools with a relatively high percentage of peers with lower-educated parents (lower parental education schools) are more likely to develop emotional and behavioural problems compared to children in higher-educated households and schools. Universal school-based preventive interventions, such as the Good Behaviour Game (GBG), are generally effective in preventing the development of emotional and behavioural problems, but information about potential moderators is limited. This study examined whether the effectiveness of the GBG in preventing emotional and behavioural problems differs between children in lower- and higher-educated households and schools. METHODS: Using a longitudinal multi-level randomized controlled trial design, 731 children (Mage=6.02 towards the end of kindergarten) from 31 mainstream schools (intervention arm: 21 schools, 484 children; control arm: 10 schools, 247 children) were followed annually from kindergarten to second grade (2004-2006). The GBG was implemented in first and second grades. RESULTS: Overall, the GBG prevented the development of emotional and behavioural problems. However, for emotional problems, the GBG-effect was slightly more pronounced in higher parental education schools than in lower parental education schools (Bhigher parental education schools =-0.281, P <0.001; Blower parental education schools =-0.140, P = 0.016). No moderation by household-level parental education was found. CONCLUSIONS: Studies into universal school-based preventive interventions, and in particular the GBG, should consider and incorporate school-level factors when studying the effectiveness of such interventions. More attention should be directed towards factors that may influence universal prevention effectiveness, particularly in lower parental education schools.

An incongruous intervention: Exploring the role of anti-institutionalism in less-educated individual's limited uptake of nutrition information.

Despite many efforts, nutritional health interventions have been largely unable to reduce health inequalities between less- and more-educated individuals, since their effectiveness among the former is often limited. Conventionally, adverse financial circumstances and poorer health literacy are argued to explain this. Drawing on recent sociological insights, we propose a complementing and novel sociocultural explanation based on how contemporary power relations in society breed anti-institutionalism among less-educated individuals. Using a survey of a representative sample of the Dutch population (n = 2398), we focus on the strategic case of the lower uptake of nutrition information among less-educated individuals. We find that two aspects of anti-institutionalism, i.e. institutional distrust and antipaternalism, substantially account for the educational gap in the uptake of nutrition information. This indicates that current nutrition information inspires opposition among less-educated individuals. More generally, it suggests that the development of nutritional health interventions should avoid invoking institutional connotations, to increase their acceptance by those who commonly need these most.

Untangling the relationship between negative illness perceptions and worse quality of life in patients with advanced cancer-a study from the population-based PROFILES registry.

PURPOSE: Quality of life (QoL) is an important yet complex outcome of care in patients with advanced cancer. QoL is associated with physical and psychosocial symptoms and with patients' illness perceptions (IPs). IPs are modifiable cognitive constructs developed to make sense of one's illness. It is unclear how IPs influence patients' QoL. A better understanding of this relationship can inform and direct high quality care aimed at improving patients' QoL. We therefore investigated the mediating role of anxiety and depression in the association of IPs with QoL. METHODS: Data from 377 patients with advanced cancer were used from the PROFILES registry. Patients completed measures on IPs (BIPQ), QoL (EORTC QLQ-C30), and symptoms of anxiety and depression (HADS). Mediation analyses were conducted to decompose the total effect of IPs on QoL into a direct effect and indirect effect. RESULTS: All IPs but one ("Comprehensibility") were negatively associated with QoL (p<0.001); patients with more negative IPs tended to have worse QoL. The effect was strongest for patients who felt that their illness affected their life more severely ("Consequences"), patients who were more concerned about their illness ("Concern"), and patients who thought that their illness strongly affected them emotionally ("Emotions"). Anxiety mediated 41-87% and depression mediated 39-69% of the total effect of patients' IPs on QoL. CONCLUSION: Negative IPs are associated with worse QoL. Anxiety and depression mediate this association. Targeting symptoms of anxiety and depression, through the modification of IPs, has the potential to improve QoL of patients with advanced cancer.

Do perceived social neighborhood factors explain the association between neighborhood age composition and mental health among Dutch older adults?

BACKGROUND: In the light of urbanization and aging, a crucially relevant policy question is how to shape neighborhoods to foster healthy aging. An important debate is whether older adults should group in neighborhoods, or whether a more mixed neighborhood age composition is more beneficial to health and well-being. We therefore assessed the association between neighborhood age structure and mental health and the mediating role of individual perceptions of neighborhood social factors. METHODS: We conducted multivariable linear regression models and causal mediation analyses in 1255 older adults of the Dutch Globe study. The neighborhood age structure was measured in 2011 as the homogeneity of the age composition (using the Herfindahl-Hirschman index, range from 0 to 100, a higher score indicating more homogeneity) and the percentage of specific age groups in a neighborhood. Mental health was measured in 2014 by the Mental Health Inventory-5 score (range 0 to 100, a higher score indicating better mental health). Potential mediators were assessed in 2011 and included perceptions of neighborhood social cohesion, feeling at home in a neighborhood, and social participation. RESULTS: A more homogeneous age composition (not specified for age) and a higher percentage of children living in a neighborhood were associated with better mental health, the other age categories were not. Social cohesion, feeling at home and social participation did not mediate the associations. CONCLUSIONS: The neighborhood age composition may be an interesting but currently insufficiently understood entry point for policies to improve older adult's mental health status.

Neighbourhood characteristics and children's oral health: a multilevel population-based cohort study.

BACKGROUND: To understand determinants of oral health inequalities, multilevel modelling is a useful manner to study contextual factors in relation to individual oral health. Several studies outside Europe have been performed so far, however, contextual variables used are diverse and results conflicting. Therefore, this study investigated whether neighbourhood level differences in oral health exist, and whether any of the neighbourhood characteristics used were associated with oral health. METHODS: This study is embedded in The Generation R Study, a prospective cohort study conducted in The Netherlands. In total, 5 960 6-year-old children, representing 158 neighbourhoods in the area of Rotterdam, were included. Data on individual and neighbourhood characteristics were derived from questionnaires, and via open data resources. Caries was assessed via intraoral photographs, and defined as decayed, missing and filled teeth (dmft). RESULTS: Differences between neighbourhoods explained 13.3% of the risk of getting severe caries, and 2% of the chance of visiting the dentist yearly. After adjustments for neighbourhood and individual characteristics, neighbourhood deprivation was significantly associated with severe dental caries (OR: 1.48, 95% CI: 1.02-2.15), and suggestive of a low odds of visiting the dentist yearly (OR: 0.81, 95% CI: 0.56-1.18). CONCLUSIONS: Childhood caries and use of dental services differs between neighbourhoods and living in a deprived neighbourhood is associated with increased dental caries and decreased yearly use of dental services. This highlights the importance of neighbourhoods for understanding differences in children's oral health, and for targeted policies and interventions to improve the oral health of children living in deprived neighbourhoods.

Health care utilization and health-related quality of life of injury patients: comparison of educational groups.

BACKGROUND: Differences in health care utilization by educational level can contribute to inequalities in health. Understanding health care utilization and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of educational groups may provide important insights into the presence of these inequalities. Therefore, we assessed characteristics, health care utilization and HRQoL of injury patients by educational level. METHOD: Data for this registry based cohort study were extracted from the Dutch Injury Surveillance System. At 6-month follow-up, a stratified sample of patients (≥25 years) with an unintentional injury reported their health care utilization since discharge and completed the EQ-5-Dimension, 5-Level (EQ-5D-5L) and visual analogue scale (EQ VAS). Logistic regression analyses, adjusting for patient and injury characteristics, were performed to investigate the association between educational level and health care utilization. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse HRQoL scores by educational level, for hospitalized and non-hospitalized patients. RESULTS: This study included 2606 patients; 47.9% had a low, 24.4% a middle level, and 27.7% a high level of education. Patients with low education were more often female, were older, had more comorbidities, and lived more often alone compared to patients with high education (p < 0.001). Patients with high education were more likely to visit a general practitioner (OR: 1.38; CI: 1.11-1.72) but less likely to be hospitalized (OR: 0.79; CI: 0.63-1.00) and to have nursing care at home (OR: 0.66; CI: 0.49-0.90) compared to their low educated counterparts. For both hospitalized an non-hospitalized persons, those with low educational level reported lower HRQoL and more problems on all dimensions than those with a higher educational level. CONCLUSION: Post-discharge, level of education was associated with visiting the general practitioner and nursing care at home, but not significantly with use of other health care services in the 6 months post-injury. Additionally, patients with a low educational level had a poorer HRQoL. However, other factors including age and sex may also explain a part of these differences between educational groups. It is important that patients are aware of potential consequences of their trauma and when and why they should consult a specific health care service after ED or hospital discharge.

Time-varying Effects of Screen Media Exposure in the Relationship Between Socioeconomic Background and Childhood Obesity.

BACKGROUND: We investigated to what extent social inequalities in childhood obesity could be reduced by eliminating differences in screen media exposure. METHODS: We used longitudinal data from the UK-wide Millennium Cohort Study (n = 11,413). The study measured mother's educational level at child's age 5. We calculated screen media exposure as a combination of television viewing and computer use at ages 7 and 11. We derived obesity at age 14 from anthropometric measures. We estimated a counterfactual disparity measure of the unmediated association between mother's education and obesity by fitting an inverse probability-weighted marginal structural model, adjusting for mediator-outcome confounders. RESULTS: Compared with children of mothers with a university degree, children of mothers with education to age 16 were 1.9 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.5, 2.3) times as likely to be obese. Those whose mothers had no qualifications were 2.0 (95% CI = 1.5, 2.5) times as likely to be obese. Compared with mothers with university qualifications, the estimated counterfactual disparity in obesity at age 14, if educational differences in screen media exposure at age 7 and 11 were eliminated, was 1.8 (95% CI = 1.4, 2.2) for mothers with education to age 16 and 1.8 (95% CI = 1.4, 2.4) for mothers with no qualifications on the risk ratio scale. Hence, relative inequalities in childhood obesity would reduce by 13% (95% CI = 1%, 26%) and 17% (95% CI = 1%, 33%). Estimated reductions on the risk difference scale (absolute inequalities) were of similar magnitude. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings are consistent with the hypothesis that social inequalities in screen media exposure contribute substantially to social inequalities in childhood obesity.

How does cultural capital keep you thin? Exploring unique aspects of cultural class that link social advantage to lower body mass index.

A widely used indicator for cultural class is strongly related to a lower body mass index (BMI): cultural capital measured as 'highbrow' taste. This study's objective was to theorise and measure aspects of cultural class that are more plausibly linked to low BMI, and subsequently explore their relevance. Building on Bourdieusian theory we derive four of those aspects: 'refinement' (valuing form and appearance over function and substance), 'asceticism' (self-imposed constraints), 'diversity' (appreciation of variety in and of itself) and 'reflexivity' (reflexive deliberation and internal dialogue). Using standardised interviews with 597 participants in the Dutch GLOBE study in 2016, we subsequently demonstrate: (i) newly developed survey items can reliably measure four aspects of cultural class: 'asceticism', 'general refinement', 'food refinement' and 'reflexivity' (Cronbach's alphas between 0.67-0.77); (ii) embodied/objectified cultural capital (i.e. 'highbrow' taste) was positively associated with general refinement, food refinement and reflexivity, whereas institutionalised cultural capital (i.e. education) was positively associated with asceticism and reflexivity; (iii) asceticism, general refinement, reflexivity, but not food refinement, were associated with a lower BMI; (iv) asceticism, general refinement and reflexivity together accounted for 52% of the association between embodied/objectified cultural capital and BMI, and 38% of the association between institutionalised cultural capital and BMI.

How does bridging social capital relate to health-behavior, overweight and obesity among low and high educated groups? A cross-sectional analysis of GLOBE-2014.

BACKGROUND: Social capital is an important determinant of health, but how specific sub-dimensions of social capital affect health and health-related behaviors is still unknown. To better understand its role for health inequalities, it is important to distinguish between bonding social capital (connections between homogenous network members; e.g. similar educational level) and bridging social capital (connections between heterogeneous network members). In this study, we test the hypotheses that, 1) among low educational groups, bridging social capital is positively associated with health-behavior, and negatively associated with overweight and obesity, and 2) among high educational groups, bridging social capital is negatively associated with health-behavior, and positively with overweight and obesity. METHODS: Cross-sectional data on educational level, health-behavior, overweight and obesity from participants (25-75 years; Eindhoven, the Netherlands) of the 2014-survey of the GLOBE study were used (N = 2702). Social capital ("How many of your close friends have the same educational level as you have?") was dichotomized as: bridging ('about half', 'some', or 'none of my friends'), or bonding ('all' or 'most of my friends'). Logistic regression models were used to study whether bridging social capital was related to health-related behaviors (e.g. smoking, food intake, physical activity), overweight and obesity, and whether these associations differed between low and high educational groups. RESULTS: Among low educated, having bridging social capital (i.e. friends with a higher educational level) reduced the likelihood to report overweight (OR 0.73, 95% CI 0.52-1.03) and obesity (OR 0.58, 95% CI 0.38-0.88), compared to low educated with bonding social capital. In contrast, among high educated, having bridging social capital (i.e. friends with a lower educational level) increased the likelihood to report daily smoking (OR 2.11, 95% CI 1.37-3.27), no leisure time cycling (OR 1.55, 95% CI 1.17-2.04), not meeting recommendations for vegetable intake (OR 2.09, 95% CI 1.50-2.91), and high meat intake (OR 1.39, 95% CI 1.05-1.83), compared to high educated with bonding social capital. CONCLUSIONS: Bridging social capital had differential relations with health-behavior among low and high educational groups. Policies aimed at reducing segregation between educational groups may reduce inequalities in overweight, obesity and unhealthy behaviors.

Does cultural capital contribute to educational inequalities in food consumption in the Netherlands? A cross-sectional analysis of the GLOBE-2011 survey.

BACKGROUND: The importance of culture for food consumption is widely acknowledged, as well as the fact that culture-based resources ("cultural capital") differ between educational groups. Since current explanations for educational inequalities in healthy and unhealthy food consumption (e.g. economic capital, social capital) are unable to fully explain this gradient, we aim to investigate a new explanation for educational inequalities in healthy food consumption, i.e. the role of cultural capital. METHODS: Data were obtained cross-sectionally by a postal survey among participants of the GLOBE study in the Netherlands in 2011 (N = 2953; response 67.1%). The survey measured respondents' highest attained educational level, food-related cultural capital (institutionalised, objectivised and incorporated cultural capital), economic capital (e.g. home ownership, financial strain), social capital (e.g. social support, health-related social leverage, interpersonal relationships), and frequency of consumption of healthy and unhealthy food products. Two general outcomes (overall healthy food consumption, and overall unhealthy food consumption), and seven specific food consumption outcomes were constructed, and prevalence ratios (PR) were estimated in Poisson regression models with robust variance. RESULTS: Cultural capital was significantly associated with all food outcomes, also when social and economic capital were taken into account. Those with low levels of cultural capital were more likely to have a lower overall healthy food consumption (PR 1.35, 95% CI 1.22-1.49), a lower consumption of whole wheat bread (PR 1.21, 95% CI 1.05-1.38), vegetables (PR 1.55, 95% CI 1.40-1.71), and meat-substitutes and fish (PR 1.74, 95% CI 1.53-1.97), and a higher consumption of fried food (PR 1.59, 95% CI 1.31-1.93). Social capital was positively associated with overall healthy food consumption, whole wheat bread consumption, and the consumption of fish and meat-substitutes, and economic capital with none of the outcomes. The PR of the lowest educational group to have a low overall healthy food consumption decreased from 1.48 (95% CI 1.28-1.73) to 1.22 (95% CI 1.04-1.43) when cultural, social and economic capital were taken into account. CONCLUSIONS: Cultural capital contributed to the explanation of educational inequalities in food consumption in The Netherlands, over and above economic and social capital. The socialisation processes through which cultural capital is acquired could offer new entry-points for the promotion of healthy food consumption among low educational groups.

What's the difference? A gender perspective on understanding educational inequalities in all-cause and cause-specific mortality.

BACKGROUND: Material and behavioural factors play an important role in explaining educational inequalities in mortality, but gender differences in these contributions have received little attention thus far. We examined the contribution of a range of possible mediators to relative educational inequalities in mortality for men and women separately. METHODS: Baseline data (1991) of men and women aged 25 to 74 years participating in the prospective Dutch GLOBE study were linked to almost 23 years of mortality follow-up from Dutch registry data (6099 men and 6935 women). Cox proportional hazard models were used to calculate hazard ratios with 95% confidence intervals, and to investigate the contribution of material (financial difficulties, housing tenure, health insurance), employment-related (type of employment, occupational class of the breadwinner), behavioural (alcohol consumption, smoking, leisure and sports physical activity, body mass index) and family-related factors (marital status, living arrangement, number of children) to educational inequalities in all-cause and cause-specific mortality, i.e. mortality from cancer, cardiovascular disease, other diseases and external causes. RESULTS: Educational gradients in mortality were found for both men and women. All factors together explained 62% of educational inequalities in mortality for lowest educated men, and 71% for lowest educated women. Yet, type of employment contributed substantially more to the explanation of educational inequalities in all-cause mortality for men (29%) than for women (- 7%), whereas the breadwinner's occupational class contributed more for women (41%) than for men (7%). Material factors and employment-related factors contributed more to inequalities in mortality from cardiovascular disease for men than for women, but they explained more of the inequalities in cancer mortality for women than for men. CONCLUSIONS: Gender differences in the contribution of employment-related factors to the explanation of educational inequalities in all-cause mortality were found, but not of material, behavioural or family-related factors. A full understanding of educational inequalities in mortality benefits from a gender perspective, particularly when considering employment-related factors.

The role of financial strain and self-control in explaining health behaviours: the GLOBE study.

Background: Why lower socioeconomic groups behave less healthily can only partly be explained by direct costs of behaving healthily. We hypothesize that low income increases the risk of facing financial strain. Experiencing financial strain takes up cognitive 'bandwidth' and leads to less self-control, and subsequently results in more unhealthy behaviour. We therefore aim to investigate (i) whether a low income increases the likelihood of experiencing financial strain and of unhealthy behaviours, (ii) to what extent more financial strain is associated with less self-control and, subsequently, (iii) whether less self-control is related to more unhealthy behaviour. Methods: Cross-sectional survey data were obtained from participants (25-75 years) in the fifth wave of the Dutch GLOBE study (N = 2812) in 2014. The associations between income, financial strain, self-control and health-behaviour-related outcomes (physical inactivity in leisure-time, obesity, smoking, excessive alcohol intake, and weekly fruit and vegetable intake) were analysed with linear regression and generalized linear regression models (log link). Results: Experiencing great compared with no financial strain increased the risk of all health-behaviour-related outcomes, independent of income. Low self-control, as compared with high self-control, also increased the risk of an unhealthy lifestyle. Taking self-control into account slightly attenuated the associations between financial strain and the outcomes. Conclusion: Great financial strain and low self-control are consistently associated with unhealthy behaviours. Self-control may partly mediate between financial strain and unhealthy behaviour. Interventions that relieve financial strain may free up cognitive bandwidth and improve health behaviour.

Material, behavioural, cultural and psychosocial factors in the explanation of socioeconomic inequalities in oral health.

Background: This study aimed to assess the contribution of material, behavioural, cultural and psychosocial factors in the explanation of socioeconomic inequalities (education and income) in oral health of Dutch adults. Methods: Cross-sectional data from participants (25-75 years of age) of the fifth wave of the GLOBE cohort were used (n = 2812). Questionnaires were used to obtain data on material factors (e.g. financial difficulties), behavioural factors (e.g. smoking), cultural factors (e.g. cultural activities) and psychosocial factors (e.g. psychological distress). Oral health outcomes were self-reported number of teeth and self-rated oral health (SROH). Mediation analysis, using multivariable negative binomial regression and logistic regression, was performed. Results: Education level and income showed a graded positive relationship with both oral health outcomes. Adding material, behavioural, cultural and psychosocial factors substantially reduced the rate ratio for the number of teeth of the lowest education group from 0.79 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.75-0.83) to 0.92 (95% CI: 0.87-0.97) and of the lowest income group from 0.80 (95% CI: 0.73-0.88) to 1.04 (95% CI: 0.96-1.14). Inclusion of all factors also substantially reduced the odds ratio for poor SROH of the lowest education group from 1.61 (95% CI: 1.28-2.03) to 1.12 (95% CI: 0.85-1.48) and of the lowest income groups from 3.18 (95% CI: 2.13-4.74) to 1.48 (95% CI: 0.90-2.45). Conclusion: In general, behavioural factors contributed most to the explanation of socioeconomic inequalities in adult oral health, followed by material factors. The contribution of cultural and psychosocial factors was relatively moderate.

Does social distinction contribute to socioeconomic inequalities in diet: the case of 'superfoods' consumption.

BACKGROUND: The key mechanisms underlying socioeconomic inequalities in dietary intake are still poorly understood, hampering the development of interventions. An important, but sparsely mentioned mechanism is that of 'social distinction', whereby those in a higher socioeconomic position adopt dietary patterns by which they can distinguish themselves from lower socioeconomic groups. We investigated the importance of distinction as a mechanism, by testing the socioeconomic gradient in the consumption of so-called 'superfoods' and the contribution of a well-established indicator of distinction, cultural participation. METHODS: Data from participants (25-75 years) of the 2014 survey of the Dutch population-based GLOBE study were used (N = 2812). Multivariable regression models were used to analyse the association between education, income and cultural participation (e.g. visits to museums, opera, theatre, concerts) and the consumption of superfoods (spelt, quinoa and goji berries, chia seeds or wheatgrass). RESULTS: The consumption of superfoods is far more prevalent among higher socioeconomic groups. Adjusting for cultural participation strongly attenuated the educational and income gradient in superfoods consumption, whereas cultural participation remained strongly associated with superfoods consumption. Those in the highest quintile of cultural participation reported the highest consumption of spelt products (OR = 2.97, 95% CI = 2.10;4.18), quinoa (OR = 3.50, 95% CI = 2.12;5.79) and goji berries, chia seeds or wheatgrass (OR = 2.69, 95% CI = 1.73;4.17). CONCLUSIONS: The associations between socioeconomic position and the consumption of 'superfoods' seem to be partially driven by a process of social distinction. These findings suggest that distinction may be an important, but currently neglected mechanism in generating socioeconomic inequalities in dietary intake. It deserves a more prominent role in interventions to reduce these inequalities.

Examining neighborhood effects on mental health utilizing a novel two-stage modeling approach.

PURPOSE: Neighborhood conditions may affect health, but health may also determine a preference for where to live. This study estimates the effect of neighborhood characteristics on mental health while aiming to adjust for this residential self-selection. METHODS: A two-step method was implemented using register data from Statistics Netherlands from all residents of the city of Rotterdam relocating within the city in 2013 (N = 12,456). First, using a conditional logit model, we estimated for each individual the probability of relocating to a neighborhood over all other neighborhoods in Rotterdam, based on personal and neighborhood characteristics in 2013. Second, we corrected this selection process in a model investigating the effects of neighborhood characteristics in 2014 on reimbursed anti-depressant or anti-psychotic medication in 2016. RESULTS: Personal and neighborhood characteristics predicted neighborhood choice, indicating strong patterns of selection into neighborhoods. Unadjusted for selection log neighborhood income was associated with reimbursed medication (ß = -0.040, 95% CI = -0.060, -0.020), but the association strongly attenuated after controlling for self-selection into neighborhoods (ß = -0.010, 95% CI = -0.030, 0.011). The opposite was observed for contact with neighbors; unadjusted for self-selection there was no association (ß = -0.020, 95% CI = -0.073, 0.033), but after adjustment increased neighborhood contact was associated with an 8.5% relative reduction in reimbursed medication (ß = -0.075, 95% CI = -0.126, -0.025). CONCLUSIONS: The method illustrated in this study offers new opportunities to disentangle selection from causation in neighborhood health research.

Social inequalities in child development: the role of differential exposure and susceptibility to stressful family conditions.

BACKGROUND: Stressful family conditions may contribute to inequalities in child development because they are more common among disadvantaged groups (ie, differential exposure) and/or because their negative effects are stronger among disadvantaged groups (ie, differential impact/susceptibility). We used counterfactual mediation analysis to investigate to what extent stressful family conditions contribute to inequalities in child development via differential exposure and susceptibility. METHODS: We used data from the Generation R Study, a population-based birth cohort in the Netherlands (n=6842). Mother's education was used as the exposure. Developmental outcomes, measured at age 13 years, were emotional and behavioural problems (Youth Self-Report), cognitive development (Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children) and secondary education entry level. Financial and social stress at age 9 years were the putative mediators. RESULTS: Differential exposure to financial stress caused a 0.07 (95% CI -0.12 to -0.01) SD worse emotional and behavioural problem -score, a 0.05 (95% CI -0.08 to -0.02) SD lower intelligence score and a 0.05 (95% CI -0.05 to -0.01) SD lower secondary educational level, respectively, among children of less-educated mothers compared with children of more-educated mothers. This corresponds to a relative contribution of 54%, 9% and 6% of the total effect of mother's education on these outcomes, respectively. Estimates for differential exposure to social stress, and differential susceptibility to financial or social stress, were much less pronounced. CONCLUSION: Among children of less-educated mothers, higher exposure to financial stress in the family substantially contributes to inequalities in socioemotional development, but less so for cognitive development and educational attainment.

Testing conditionality with Bourdieu's capital theory: How economic, social, and embodied cultural capital are associated with diet and physical activity in the Netherlands.

Although Bourdieu's capital theory emphasized that economic, social, and embodied cultural capital interact to shape health behavior, existing empirical research mainly considered separate associations of the three forms of capital. Our aim was to investigate if and how economic, social, and embodied cultural capital are conditional on each other in their associations with adults' diet and physical activity. Cross-sectional, self-reported data from the 2014 GLOBE survey of 2812 adults aged between 25 and 75 years residing in Eindhoven, the Netherlands were used. Step-wise multiple logistic regression models included economic, social, and embodied cultural capital and adjustment for potential confounders. The models estimated odds ratios of main effects and two-way interactions of the forms of capital with fruit consumption, vegetable consumption, sports participation, and leisure time walking or cycling. In the main effects models, embodied cultural capital was consistently positively associated with all outcomes. Social capital was positively associated with sports participation, fruit consumption, and vegetable consumption, and economic capital was positively associated with sports participation and vegetable consumption. In the two-way interaction models, having specific higher levels of both economic and social capital strengthened their positive association with sports participation. No other combinations of capital were conditional on each other. Economic and social capital were conditional on each other in their association with sports participation, so interventions that provide both economic and social support may be especially effective for increasing this type of physical activity. As its association was strong with all outcomes but not conditional on other forms of capital, embodied cultural capital may operate distinctly from economic and social resources. Policy that takes differences in embodied cultural capital into account or changes to the environment that dampen the importance of embodied cultural resources for health behavior may help improve both diet and physical activity.