title: Socio-economic disparities in Australian adolescents' eating behaviours.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the association between socio-economic position (SEP) and poor eating behaviours in a large representative sample of Australian secondary-school students.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional survey of students' vegetable, fruit, sugar-sweetened beverage and fast-food consumption assessed using validated instruments and collected via a web-based self-report format.
  
  
  METHODS
  Secondary schools across all Australian states and territories.
  
  
  METHODS
  Secondary-school students (n 12 188; response rate: 54 %) aged 12-17 years participating in the 2009-10 National Secondary Students' Diet and Activity (NaSSDA) survey.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Overall, 25 % of students reported consuming ≤1 serving of vegetables/d and 29 % reported eating ≤1 serving of fruit/d. Fourteen per cent of students reported drinking at least 1-2 cups of sugar-sweetened beverages/d while 9 % reported eating fast food ≥3 times/week. After adjusting for other demographic factors, students of lower-SEP areas were more likely to report low intake of vegetables (F(4, 231) = 3·61, P = 0·007) and high frequency of consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (F(4, 231) = 8·41, P < 0·001) and fast food (F(4, 231) = 4·59, P = 0·001) compared with students of high-SEP neighbourhoods. A positive SEP association was found for fruit consumption among female students only (F(4, 231) = 4·20, P = 0·003). Those from lower-SEP areas were also more likely to engage in multiple poor eating behaviours (F(4, 231)=5·80, P < 0·001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Results suggest that socio-economic disparities in Australian adolescents' eating behaviours do exist, with students residing in lower-SEP neighbourhoods faring less well than those from high-SEP neighbourhoods. Reducing social inequalities in eating behaviours among young people should be a key consideration of future preventive strategies.
authors.affiliation: 1Centre for Behavioural Research in Cancer,Cancer Council Victoria,1 Rathdowne Street,Carlton,Victoria 3053,Australia.
authors.forename: Philippa
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Niven
authors.affiliation: 1Centre for Behavioural Research in Cancer,Cancer Council Victoria,1 Rathdowne Street,Carlton,Victoria 3053,Australia.
authors.forename: Maree
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Scully
authors.affiliation: 1Centre for Behavioural Research in Cancer,Cancer Council Victoria,1 Rathdowne Street,Carlton,Victoria 3053,Australia.
authors.forename: Belinda
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Morley
authors.affiliation: 2Centre for Physical Activity and Nutrition Research,Deakin University,Burwood,Victoria,Australia.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Crawford
authors.affiliation: 3Discipline of Paediatrics & Child Health,The University of Sydney,Sydney,New South Wales,Australia.
authors.forename: Louise A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Baur
authors.affiliation: 1Centre for Behavioural Research in Cancer,Cancer Council Victoria,1 Rathdowne Street,Carlton,Victoria 3053,Australia.
authors.forename: Melanie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wakefield
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior; D001315:Australia; D002648:Child; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004032:Diet; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D005518:Food Preferences; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012574:Schools; D012923:Social Class; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors