Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #100491

Sibylle Kranz, PhD, RD, Nutritional Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, 5-G Henderson Building, State College, PA 16802, Elizabeth Hill Ruder, RD, Department of Nutritional Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, 5F Henderson Building, State College, PA 16802, 814-865-6325, enh115@psu.edu, Anna Maria Siega-Riz, PhD, RD, Dept. of Maternal and Child Health, School of Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, CB# 7445, Rosenau Hall, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7445, David K. Guilkey, PhD, Department of Economics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 107 Gardner Hall, CB 3305, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3305, and Barry Popkin, PhD, Department of Nutrition, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Carolina Population Center, 123 West Franklin Street, Chapel Hill, NC 27516.

Background: In recent decades, increasing numbers of working mothers (female heads of households) were paralleled by higher frequency of dining out and decreasing diet quality in American children.

Objective: Examination of the effect of mothers' employment status on food sources of nutrients in 2-18 year olds.

Design: Dietary and socio-demographic data were ascertained from the CSFII 1994-96 and 1998 surveys (n=9008) and mothers' work status categorized as full-time, part-time, and not employed. Food sources of energy and nutrient density were categorized: home, store, school, restaurant/fast food, or miscellaneous and stepwise regression analysis employed in two age-groups (age 2-5 or 5-18) to examine the effect of work status on nutrient consumption from these sources.

Results: Consumption of some food groups and nutrients were significantly affected: on average, 2-5 year olds consumed less energy from foods from home (-85 and -49 kcal for full-and part-time employment) and more from restaurants/fast food (323 and 144 kcal), in form of less calcium dense foods (-58 and -218 mg/1,000kcal for full- and part-time) than in children with unemployed mothers. Older children with employed mothers also had less energy from foods at home (-127 and -145 kcal for full-and part-time) but more from stores (194 and 222 kcal); those foods were also less calcium dense (-14 and -103 mg/1,000kcal).

Conclusions: Our data suggests that maternal employment status increases consumption of foods away from home, however we observed no trend of a detrimental effect on diet quality with increasing level of maternal employment.

Learning Objectives:

• Analyze the relationship between mothers’ employment status and food sources of nutrients in American children 2-18 years old.

• Assess the effect of maternal employment status on intake level of selected nutrients from various food sources.

• Evaluate the association between maternal employment status and total daily energy consumed from selected food sources.

Keywords: Nutrition, Children and Adolescents

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.

Recorded presentation