Development of inequalities in fruit and vegetable intake through early adulthood: insights from household panel surveys in the United Kingdom and Australia
File(s)
Published version
Author(s)
Braune, Tanya
Livingstone, Katherine M
Adams, Jean
Winpenny, Eleanor M
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Background
Adequate fruit and vegetable intake is important for preventing chronic disease. The transition from adolescence to early adulthood involves changes in their social and environmental context, lifestyle and behaviours that may determine lifelong dietary patterns. Differences that emerge between populations over this age range may lead to long-term health inequalities. This study examined the trajectories of fruit and vegetable intake among young adults in the United Kingdom (UK) and Australia.
Methods
We analysed data from young adults aged 16–30 years from the UK Household Longitudinal Study (UKHLS; n = 2751) and the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia Survey (HILDA; n = 6255). Hybrid mixed-effect regression models were fitted to assess intake trajectories of fruit and vegetables, exploring differences by sex and socioeconomic position.
Results
Fruit intake decreased and vegetable intake increased with age in both countries. Fruit intake trajectories differed by sex in both cohorts, while vegetable intake trajectories differed by sex in Australia only. Parental education was a predictor of fruit and vegetable intake trajectories in both cohorts, with differences between groups with high and low parental education narrowing with age in Australia for fruit intake.
Conclusions
The differing trajectories emphasise the importance of understanding contextual influences to effectively tailor public health strategies. Our study highlights early adulthood as a critical period for developing dietary patterns that could influence long-term health outcomes, with differences between groups emerging quickly. Addressing these inequalities is essential when developing policies aimed at improving diet among young adults and reducing the prevalence of chronic disease.
Adequate fruit and vegetable intake is important for preventing chronic disease. The transition from adolescence to early adulthood involves changes in their social and environmental context, lifestyle and behaviours that may determine lifelong dietary patterns. Differences that emerge between populations over this age range may lead to long-term health inequalities. This study examined the trajectories of fruit and vegetable intake among young adults in the United Kingdom (UK) and Australia.
Methods
We analysed data from young adults aged 16–30 years from the UK Household Longitudinal Study (UKHLS; n = 2751) and the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia Survey (HILDA; n = 6255). Hybrid mixed-effect regression models were fitted to assess intake trajectories of fruit and vegetables, exploring differences by sex and socioeconomic position.
Results
Fruit intake decreased and vegetable intake increased with age in both countries. Fruit intake trajectories differed by sex in both cohorts, while vegetable intake trajectories differed by sex in Australia only. Parental education was a predictor of fruit and vegetable intake trajectories in both cohorts, with differences between groups with high and low parental education narrowing with age in Australia for fruit intake.
Conclusions
The differing trajectories emphasise the importance of understanding contextual influences to effectively tailor public health strategies. Our study highlights early adulthood as a critical period for developing dietary patterns that could influence long-term health outcomes, with differences between groups emerging quickly. Addressing these inequalities is essential when developing policies aimed at improving diet among young adults and reducing the prevalence of chronic disease.
Date Issued
2025-08-01
Date Acceptance
2025-03-18
Citation
European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2025, 79, pp.793-801
ISSN
0954-3007
Publisher
Springer Nature
Start Page
793
End Page
801
Journal / Book Title
European Journal of Clinical Nutrition
Volume
79
Copyright Statement
© The Author(s) 2025 Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
License URL
Identifier
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/40181174
PII: 10.1038/s41430-025-01609-x
Publication Status
Published
Coverage Spatial
England
Date Publish Online
2025-04-03