Food purchasing and preparation patterns by gender during the COVID-19 lockdown in Chilean workers / Patrones de compra y preparación de alimentos según género durante la cuarentena por COVID-19 en trabajadores chilenos

Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the demands that workers face regarding household food-related tasks, such as grocery shopping and cooking. The literature shows that there are differences in these demands by gender, but also based on other sociodemographic characteristics, such as schooling level. The aim of this study was to compare food purchasing and preparation patterns by gender in Chilean workers, before the COVID-19 lockdown and during the first six weeks of lockdown. The study was cross-sectional, and data was collected for the first wave of a multi-country study in April 2020. The sample was composed of 317 participants who were employed during lockdown (67.8% women, mean age of 38.14). Participants answered sociodemographic questions and reported their food purchasing and preparing practices before and during lockdown. Analysis of comparison of proportions was used. On average, during lockdown, men increased their involvement in grocery shopping while women cooked more. Overall, female workers have turned to food-related tasks more often during the pandemic than male workers. This study shows the extent to which workers have changed their degree of involvement in food-related tasks, accounting for conditions such as gender roles, schooling level and working from home. These findings can inform interventions and policies that reinforce advantageous changes brought on by lockdown measures (e.g., home-cooking) to contribute to workers' and their families' food-related well-being during and in the aftermath of the pandemic.

Resumen La pandemia por COVID-19 ha aumentado las demandas que enfrentan los trabajadores con respecto a su alimentación, como comprar alimentos y cocinar. Estudios muestran diferencias de género en estas demandas, pero también según características sociodemográficas como el nivel de escolaridad. Este estudio comparó patrones de compra y preparación de alimentos por género en trabajadores chilenos, antes y durante el confinamiento por COVID-19. Este estudio es de corte transversal y utilizó datos de la primera ola de un estudio multinacional realizado en abril de 2020. La muestra fue 317 participantes que tenían trabajo durante el confinamiento (67.8 % mujeres, edad promedio de 38.14). Los participantes respondieron preguntas sociodemográficas y reportaron sus prácticas de compra y preparación de alimentos antes y durante el confinamiento. Se utilizó el análisis de comparación de proporciones. Durante el confinamiento, los hombres realizaron más compras de alimentos y las mujeres cocinaron más. Las mujeres se dedicaron a tareas relacionadas con la alimentación con más frecuencia durante la pandemia que los hombres. Este estudio muestra que personas trabajadoras han cambiado su nivel de involucramiento en tareas de alimentación durante la pandemia, tomando en cuenta condiciones como los roles de género, escolaridad y teletrabajo. Estos hallazgos pueden guiar intervenciones y políticas que refuercen ventajas derivadas de las medidas de confinamiento (e.g., cocinar en casa), para contribuir al bienestar alimentario de personas trabajadoras y sus familias durante y después de la pandemia.

Neuroendocrine and psychophysiological investigation of the evolutionary roots of gossip.

This study investigates an evolutionary hypothesis of gossip postulating that in humans it serves a similar function as social grooming in other primates. It examines whether gossip decreases physiological markers of stress and increases markers of positive emotionality and sociability. Dyads of friends (N = 66) recruited at the university, participated in an experiment where they experienced a stressor followed by social interaction (gossip or control task). Individual levels of salivary cortisol and [Formula: see text]-endorphins were assessed at before and after social interactions. Sympathetic activity and parasympathetic activity were monitored throughout the experiment. Individual differences in Tendency and Attitude towards Gossip were investigated as potential covariates. Gossip condition was characterized with increased sympathetic and parasympathetic activity, but did not differ in cortisol or [Formula: see text]-endorphins levels. However, high Tendency to Gossip was associated with decreases in cortisol. Gossip was shown to be more emotionally salient than non-social talk, but the evidence with regard to lowering stress was not sufficient to support an analogy to social grooming.

Sharing is Caring: A Study of Food-Sharing Practices in Australian Early Childhood Education and Care Services.

Food connects people, and can significantly impact the physical, social and emotional development of young children. Food sharing and family-style mealtimes can support healthy eating practices and psychological well-being among young children, and carersother than family members, such as Early Childhood Education and Care staff, play an important role in the provision of these practices. Despite increasing numbers of Australian children attending Early Childhood Education and Care services, there is often reluctance among staff to promote such mealtime practices, to the detriment of children's social and emotional development. The aim of this paper was to focus on the potential role of Early Childhood Education and Care services in facilitating food sharing and family-style mealtime practices in the earliest stages of the lifespan. A qualitative, netnographic approach was used, and data was collected as part of the broader 'Supporting Nutrition for Australian Childcare' (SNAC) study, via online conversation threads, observations and qualitative interviews. Findings demonstrated that whilst many Early Childhood Education and Care services are committed to supporting food sharing and family-style mealtime practices, a number of barriers were reported. These included the perception that babies and toddlers could not participate in these practices, concerns about food hygiene and cross contamination of allergens, and negative parental influences on food sharing. In conclusion, this paper supports the practice of food sharing in Early Childhood Education and Care settings and calls for them to become embedded in everyday operations to support the physical, social and emotional development of Australia's future generations.