Abstract
BackgroundSnack consumption has been reported to increase over recent decades. Little is known about possible associations between snack composition and snack eating location. In the present study, we aimed to describe the contribution of snacks to dietary intake in Norwegian adults and to investigate whether the composition of snacks differed according to where they were eaten.MethodsDietary data were collected in 2010 and 2011 using two telephone administered 24 h recalls about four weeks apart. In total, 1787 participants aged 18-70 years completed two recalls. The recorded eating locations were at home, other private household, work/school, restaurant/cafe/fast-food outlet and travel/meeting.ResultsSnacks contributed to 17% and 21% of the energy intake in men and women, respectively. Compared with main meals, snacks had a higher fiber density (g/MJ) and contained a higher percentage of energy from carbohydrates, added sugars and alcohol, while the percentages of energy from fat and protein were lower. The top five energy-contributing food groups from snacks were cakes, fruits, sugar/sweets, bread and alcoholic beverages. Snacks were mostly eaten at home (58% of all snacks) or at work/school (23% of all snacks). Snacks consumed at work/school contained less energy, had a higher percentage of energy from carbohydrates and had lower percentages of energy from added sugars, alcohol and fat than snacks consumed at home. Snacks consumed during visits to private households and at restaurants/cafe/fast-food outlets contained more energy, had a higher percentage of energy from fat and had a lower fiber density than snacks consumed at home.ConclusionsWe conclude that snacks are an important part of the diet and involve the consumption of both favorable and less favorable foods. Snacks eaten at home or at work/school were generally healthier than snacks consumed during visits to other private households or at restaurants/cafe/fast-food outlets. Nutritional educators should recommend healthy snack options and raise awareness of the association between eating location and snack composition.
Highlights
Snack consumption has been reported to increase over recent decades
We aimed to describe the contribution of snacks to dietary intake in Norwegian adults and to investigate whether the composition of snacks differed according to eating location
Participants were categorized as under-reporters with regard to energy intake if their estimated energy intake (EI) from the 24 h recalls divided by their estimated basal metabolic rate (BMR) (EI/BMR) was lower than 0.96 [17,18]
Summary
Snack consumption has been reported to increase over recent decades. Little is known about possible associations between snack composition and snack eating location. We aimed to describe the contribution of snacks to dietary intake in Norwegian adults and to investigate whether the composition of snacks differed according to where they were eaten. Both the frequency of snack consumption [1] and the contribution of snacks to the total energy intake [1,2,3] have been reported to increase over recent decades. We aimed to describe the contribution of snacks to dietary intake in Norwegian adults and to investigate whether the composition of snacks differed according to eating location. Sixteen percent of the participants were categorized as under-reporters [15]
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