title: Nutrition and health: different forms of diet and their relationship with various health parameters among Austrian adults.
abstract: Population-based studies report a beneficial health effect and a lower mortality rate for diets rich in fruits and vegetables. Therefore, the aim of our study was to analyze differences between various forms of diet and health-related variables. The sample for this study was taken from the Austrian Health Interview Survey 2006/07 (N = 15,474). Multivariate analyses of variance adjusted by sex, age, and socioeconomic status (SES) were conducted to examine health-related behavior, health, and quality of life depending on different forms of diet. Additionally, differences in the SES and body mass index (BMI) were analyzed. Our results show that a vegetarian diet is associated with a better health-related behavior, a lower BMI, and a higher SES. Subjects eating a carnivorous diet less rich in meat self-report poorer health, a higher number of chronic conditions, an enhanced vascular risk, as well as lower quality of life. In conclusion, our results have shown that consuming a diet rich in fruits and vegetables is associated with better health and health-related behavior. Therefore, public health programs are needed for reducing the health risks associated with a carnivorous diet.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Social Medicine and Epidemiology, Medical University Graz, Universitaetsplatz 6/I, 8010, Graz, Austria, nathalie.burkert@medunigraz.at.
authors.forename: Nathalie Tatjana
authors.initials: NT
authors.lastname: Burkert
authors.forename: Wolfgang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Freidl
authors.forename: Franziska
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Großschädel
authors.forename: Johanna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Muckenhuber
authors.forename: Willibald J
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Stronegger
authors.forename: Eva
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rásky
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology*; D001317:Austria / Q000453:epidemiology; D015992:Body Mass Index; D004032:Diet / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004522:Educational Status; D004651:Employment; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006304:Health Status; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011788:Quality of Life; D012307:Risk Factors; D017678:Sex Distribution; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012923:Social Class; D055815:Young Adult