Abstract
BackgroundThere are an estimated 9.4 million cases of foodborne illness each year. Consumers have a key role in preventing foodborne illness, but differences in the practice of food safety behaviors exist, increasing risk for certain groups in the population. Identifying groups who are more likely to practice risky food safety behaviors can assist in development of interventions to reduce the disease burden of foodborne illnesses. The purpose of this investigation was to examine the relationships of health indicators and psychosocial factors with self-reported food safety behaviors.Methods and FindingsData were collected via questionnaire from 153 African Americans who attend churches in Baltimore City. Individuals reported high overall concern with food safety (mean score: 0.80±0.49 on a scale of −1 to +1) and practiced food safety behaviors with moderate overall frequency (mean score: 5.26±4.01 on a scale of −12 to +12), with considerable variation in reported frequencies depending on the food safety behavior. After adjusting for demographic variables, food safety behaviors were significantly associated with BMI and psychosocial variables. Riskier food safety behaviors were associated with higher body mass index (BMI) (β = −0.141 95%CI (−0.237, −0.044), p = 0.004). Self-efficacy for healthy eating (standard β [std. β] = 0.250, p = 0.005) and healthy eating intentions (std. β = 0.178, p = 0.041) were associated with better food safety behaviors scores.ConclusionsThese results show important relationships between weight-related health indicators, psychosocial factors and food safety behaviors that have not previously been studied. Interventions tailored to higher-risk populations have the potential to reduce the burden of food-related illnesses. Additional studies are needed to further investigate these relationships with larger and more diverse samples.
Highlights
There are an estimated 9.4 million cases of foodborne illness that contribute to approximately 55,961 hospitalizations and 1,351 deaths each year [1]
We explore the relationship between food safety behaviors and multiple sociodemographic, health, and nutrition-related psychosocial factors and further investigate the following questions: 1. How frequently do African American churchgoers in Baltimore City perform recommended food safety practices?
The mean body mass index (BMI) of the sample was in the obese category (32.1367.01), with only 12.93% of the sample classified as normal weight (BMI 18.5–24.9)
Summary
There are an estimated 9.4 million cases of foodborne illness that contribute to approximately 55,961 hospitalizations and 1,351 deaths each year [1]. Health care costs associated with illnesses caused by the most common foodborne bacteria equal $2.9 to $6.7 billion annually [3]. Identifying groups who are more likely to practice risky food safety behaviors can assist in development of interventions to reduce the disease burden of foodborne illnesses. The purpose of this investigation was to examine the relationships of health indicators and psychosocial factors with self-reported food safety behaviors
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