Fruit and vegetable consumption across population segments: evidence from a national household survey.

BACKGROUND: The 2002 World Health Report documented that low fruit and vegetable intake are among the top ten risk factors contributing to attributable mortality and up to three million lives could be saved each year by adequate consumption of F&V across the globe, leading an examination of behavioral preferences of the individual and family social, environmental, and behavioral factors that constitute perceived barriers to fruit and vegetable consumption. OBJECTIVE: The study examines factors affecting the choice of eating fruits and vegetables by household members and calculates eating frequency probabilities of different population-origin associated with personal attributes and behavior. METHOD: Turkish Health Survey (THS) 2019 data from the Turkish Statistical Institute (TSI) national representative household panel is applied. Estimating a random-effect bivariate probit model of fruit and vegetable choice, we calculated marginal probabilities of choosing fruits and vegetables, the joint probability of choosing both, and conditional probabilities between choosing to eat either, detecting consumption synergy. RESULTS: The role of uncontrolled variables in choosing to eat fruits and vegetable (F&V) differs between the decision of an average family and the decision of individual family members. The attitude is positive for an average family and contrasts with the negative attitude among some family members. Most individual and family attributes inversely affect fruit and vegetable choice across different groups, while a positive relationship exists between the likelihood of fruit and vegetable choice and attributes such as age, marital status, education, weight, having health insurance, income, and time and forms of physical activity. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION: Instead of a general policy for the implementation of a healthy and balanced nutrition program to improve fruit and vegetable eating frequency, it appears more effective to adopt programs with distinct characteristics that segregate society into different cohorts. We suggest appropriate policies and offer suitable approaches to reach targeted groups.

The volatility of beef and lamb prices in Türkiye: The role of COVID-19, livestock imports, and energy prices.

This study examines the volatility of beef and lamb prices in Türkiye, as food price inflation compromises the food security of low- and middle-income households. The inflation is the result of a rise in energy (gasoline) prices leading to an increase in production costs, together with a disruption of the supply chain by the COVID-19 pandemic. This study is the first to comprehensively explore the effects of multiple price series on meat prices in Türkiye. Using price records from April 2006 through February 2022, the study applies rigorous testing and selects the VAR(1)-asymmetric BEKK bivariate GARCH model for empirical analysis. The beef and lamb returns were affected by periods of livestock imports, energy prices, and the COVID-19 pandemic, but those factors influenced the short- and long-term uncertainties differently. Uncertainty was increased by the COVID-19 pandemic, but livestock imports offset some of the negative effects on meat prices. To improve price stability and assure access to beef and lamb, it is recommended that livestock farmers be supported through tax exemptions to control production costs, government assistance through the introduction of highly productive livestock breeds, and improving processing flexibility. Additionally, conducting livestock sales through the livestock exchange will create a price information source allowing stakeholders to follow price movements in a digital format and their decision-making.

Relationship between the TAS2R38 and TAS1R2 polymorphisms and the dental status in obese children.

BACKGROUND: The sweet taste and bitter taste genes are thought to have an influence on obesity and caries, which are chronic diseases. OBJECTIVES: The aim of the study was to investigate the effects of the polymorphisms of TAS2R38 (the bitter taste gene) and TAS1R2 (the sweet taste gene), which are the most important members of the taste gene family, on the dental status of obese and normal-weight children. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study included 78 healthy children and 100 children diagnosed with obesity (5-16 years old). The anthropometric measurements and dental status of the children were evaluated. The decayed, missing and filled permanent/primary teeth (DMFT/dmft) index was determined using the standard methods recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO). Blood samples were collected from all subjects and were analyzed via the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test, with the use of specific primers for the genetic analysis. Five single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the TAS2R38 and TAS1R2 genes were investigated. The truncated Poisson and truncated negative binomial modeling approaches were used with regard to the data. RESULTS: The DMFT/dmft scores were low in obese children and high in children who did not sense the bitter taste (non-tasters). While obese non-taster children had increased DMFT/dmft scores, normalweight non-taster children had decreased DMFT/dmft scores. CONCLUSIONS: The alanine, valine and isoleucine (AVI) as well as proline, alanine and valine (PAV) haplotypes of the TAS2R38 gene are associated with the DMFT/dmft index and obesity. This study showed that the DMFT/dmft scores were decreased in obese children. According to the haplotype analysis of the TAS2R38 gene, the DMFT/dmft scores were increased in non-tasters. When differentiating obese nontasters and control non-tasters, DMFT/dmft increased in obese non-taster patients, while it decreased in control non-taster patients.

Determinants of Turkish households' out-of-pocket expenditures on three categories of health care services: A multivariate probit approach.

This study identifies the driving forces that contribute to the probabilities of incidence of out-of-pocket (OOP) expenditures by households in Turkey. Factors affecting the probability of OOP expenditures on medical products/devices/supplies (MP), outpatient services (OTS), and inpatient services (ITS) are examined using the Household Budget Survey data gathered by the Turkish Statistical Institute in 2018. The study applies the multivariate probit model. The incidence of OOP spending varied with 48.9% of the households reporting OOP expenditure on MP, 22.4% on OTS, and 25.4% on ITS. The largest probability changes were associated with household disposable annual income, household type and size, age category, and having private health insurance. Gender and marital status also influenced expenditures in some categories. Lifestyle choices had small and mixed effects, with smoking and alcohol consumption lowering the probability of OOP spending. From a policy standpoint, households with the lowest incomes, large households, and those where the household head was 'others' (retiree, student, housewife, not actively working, etc.) or had a condition preventing employment seemed to report OOP expenditures less frequently and may have chosen not to receive healthcare services, leading to the need for more healthcare services later.

Health-related factors on tobacco consumption in Turkey / Fatores relacionados com a saúde e o consumo de tabaco na Turquia

ABSTRACT: In this study, we analyzed the role of individuals' health-related factors along with socio-demographic and economic characteristics on both the likelihood of tobacco consumption and quantity demanded levels using two competitive econometric methods: double hurdle model versus hyperbolic sine double-hurdle model. Statistical tests confirmed the dependency errors between the prevalence rate of smoking and the consumption level, whilst the inverse-hyperbolic sine double-hurdle model data fits best in describing the normalization of the data and the two data generating processes: the probability and consumption levels of cigarettes. Also, the variance-covariance of the selected model as a function of additional exogenous variables are confirmed, while the error terms between the likelihood to smoke and the consumption levels are positive and statistically significant, indicating that holding control variables fixed, the uncontrolled variables out of the system that increase the prevalence rate of smoking also boost the consumption level, or vice versa. Many individual disease variables are significant in both equations, breaking new grounds in literature for identifying how both the prevalence rate of smoking and amount have shaped.

RESUMO: Neste estudo, analisamos o papel dos fatores relacionados à saúde dos indivíduos, juntamente com as características sócio-demográficas e econômicas, tanto na probabilidade de consumo de tabaco quanto nos níveis de quantidade demandada, usando dois métodos econométricos competitivos: modelo de obstáculo duplo versus modelo de obstáculo duplo seno hiperbólico. Os testes estatísticos confirmaram os erros de dependência entre a taxa de prevalência de tabagismo e o nível de consumo, enquanto o modelo de seno duplo inverso-hiperbólico se ajusta melhor aos dados para descrever a normalização dos dados e os dois processos geradores de dados: os níveis de probabilidade e consumo de cigarros. Também são confirmadas a covariância de variância do modelo selecionado em função de variáveis exógenas adicionais, enquanto os termos de erro entre a probabilidade de fumar e os níveis de consumo são positivos e estatisticamente significativos, indicando que, mantendo variáveis de controle fixas, as variáveis não controladas são do sistema que aumenta a taxa de prevalência do tabagismo e também cresce o nível de consumo, ou vice-versa. Muitas variáveis individuais da doença são encontradas significativamente em ambas as equações, abrindo novos caminhos na literatura para identificar como a taxa de prevalência de tabagismo e a quantidade se moldaram.

Policy implications of trends in Turkey's meat sector with respect to 2023 vision.

Turkey has become one of the leading emerging economies in the world being second after China as the highest economically growing country with 8.9% economic growth rate in 2010. Forecasting impacts of this development in coming 10 years might have very important policy implications for the meat sector in the framework of 2013 vision of Turkey. In this study, annual time series data which contain several key variables of meat sector in last 26 years (1987-2012) are used to forecast the variables of the coming twelve years (2013-2024) to drive policy implications by considering the impacts of high economic growths, crises and major policy changes. Forecasted future values of the variables for 2023 in the sector are assessed and compared with recent national and international values to drive policy implications. The results show that the economic growth results in the increase in per capita income and thus increased demand for meat seemed to foster the meat sector. Therefore, these macroeconomic indicators need to be better in addition to improvements at micro level for establishing competitive meat sector and thus reaching aimed consumption level of meat.

Application of a hurdle negative binomial count data model to demand for bass fishing in the southeastern United States.

This paper identifies factors that influence the demand for a bass fishing trip taken in the southeastern United States using a hurdle negative binomial count data model. The probability of fishing for a bass is estimated in the first stage and the fishing trip frequency is estimated in the second stage for individuals reporting bass fishing trips in the Southeast. The applied approach allows the decomposition of the effects of factors responsible for the decision to take a trip and the trip number. Calculated partial and total elasticities indicate a highly inelastic demand for the number of fishing trips as trip costs increase. However, the demand can be expected to increase if anglers experience a success measured by the number of caught fish or their size. Benefit estimates based on alternative estimation methods differ substantially, suggesting the need for testing each modeling approach applied in empirical studies.