title: How we eat what we eat: identifying meal routines and practices most strongly associated with healthy and unhealthy dietary factors among young adults.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  (i) To examine associations between young adults' meal routines and practices (e.g. food preparation, meal skipping, eating on the run) and key dietary indicators (fruit/vegetable, fast-food and sugar-sweetened beverage intakes) and (ii) to develop indices of protective and risky meal practices most strongly associated with diet.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional survey.
  
  
  METHODS
  Minneapolis/St. Paul metropolitan area, Minnesota (USA).
  
  
  METHODS
  A diverse sample of community college and public university students (n 1013).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Meal routines and practices most strongly associated with healthy dietary patterns were related to home food preparation (i.e. preparing meals at home, preparing meals with vegetables) and meal regularity (i.e. routine consumption of evening meals and breakfast). In contrast, factors most strongly associated with poor dietary patterns included eating on the run, using media while eating and purchasing foods/beverages on campus. A Protective Factors Index, summing selected protective meal routines and practices, was positively associated with fruit/vegetable consumption and negatively associated with fast-food and sugar-sweetened beverage consumption (P<0·001). A Risky Factors Index yielded significant, positive associations with fast-food and sugar-sweetened beverage consumption (P<0·001). The probability test for the association between the Risky Factors Index and fruit/vegetable intake was P=0·05.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Meal routines and practices were significantly associated with young adults' dietary patterns, suggesting that ways in which individuals structure mealtimes and contextual characteristics of eating likely influence food choice. Thus, in addition to considering specific food choices, it also may be important to consider the context of mealtimes in developing dietary messaging and guidelines.
authors.affiliation: 1Division of Epidemiology and Community Health,University of Minnesota,1300 South Second Street,Suite 300,Minneapolis,MN 55454,USA.
authors.forename: Melissa N
authors.initials: MN
authors.lastname: Laska
authors.affiliation: 1Division of Epidemiology and Community Health,University of Minnesota,1300 South Second Street,Suite 300,Minneapolis,MN 55454,USA.
authors.forename: Mary O
authors.initials: MO
authors.lastname: Hearst
authors.affiliation: 3Boynton Health Service,University of Minnesota,Minneapolis,MN,USA.
authors.forename: Katherine
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Lust
authors.affiliation: 1Division of Epidemiology and Community Health,University of Minnesota,1300 South Second Street,Suite 300,Minneapolis,MN 55454,USA.
authors.forename: Leslie A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Lytle
authors.affiliation: 1Division of Epidemiology and Community Health,University of Minnesota,1300 South Second Street,Suite 300,Minneapolis,MN 55454,USA.
authors.forename: Mary
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Story
mesh_terms: D001628:Beverages; D002755:Choice Behavior; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D002149:Energy Intake; D005006:Ethnicity; D057140:Fast Foods; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D005518:Food Preferences; D005638:Fruit; D015438:Health Behavior; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D062407:Meals; D008910:Minnesota; D015596:Nutrition Assessment; D009749:Nutrition Surveys; D012574:Schools; D014675:Vegetables; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Dietary intake; Meal practices; Young adult