title: Consumption, health attitudes and perception toward fast food among Arab consumers in Kuwait: gender differences.
abstract: This study aimed to investigate gender differences in the fast food intake, health attitudes, and perceptions of fast food among adult Arab consumers aged 19 to 65 years in Kuwait. A total of 499 consumers (252 males, 247 females) were selected at convenience from three shopping malls in Kuwait City. The consumers were interviewed using a specially designed questionnaire. The findings revealed that men were more frequently consumed fast food than women (p < 0.001). Men were significantly more likely to consume "double" burgers (52%) than women (29.9%) (P < 0.001). The great majority of consumers (95%) considered fast food harmful to health. However, the consumers were continued to intake fast food (92%), indicating that health information on fast food not necessarly affects their consumption. Local foods were more likely to be considered fast food if eaten as a sandwich or without a disposal container. It can be concluded that fast food perceptions are influenced by gender, media and socio-cultural factors. Nutrition education programmes should focus on nutritive values of the foods rather than on their "fast food" classification.
authors.affiliation: Arab Center for Nutrition. amusaiger@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Abdulrahman O
authors.initials: AO
authors.lastname: Musaiger
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001294:Attitude to Health; D057140:Fast Foods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007730:Kuwait; D008297:Male; D012737:Sex Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires