title: Influence of the Home Food Environment on Children's Fruit and Vegetable Consumption: A Study of Rural Low-Income Families.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  This investigation sought to identify micro-level built and sociocultural characteristics of a home food environment that have been theoretically linked with fruit and vegetable (F&V) consumption.
  
  
  METHODS
  We examined rural families (n = 298) from the southeastern United States. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses determined the association between the outcome variable (F&V consumption) and micro-level built and sociocultural characteristics of a home food environment.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Demographic characteristics were entered at Step 1, explaining 14% of variance in vegetable consumption and 9% in fruit consumption. After entry of sociocultural factors in the home food environment, such as parenting styles and so on, in Block 2, the total variance explained increased by 25% for vegetable consumption and 12% for fruit consumption. Micro-level built environmental factors such as the availability of F&V in the home was entered at Block 3, total variance explained by the model for vegetable consumption was 67%, F(17, 111) = 13.5, p < .001, and for fruit consumption was 57%, F(17, 160) = 12.5, p < .001.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  F&V availability was the most important variable influencing a child's consumption of F&V. There are modifiable factors within the rural low-income home that could serve as priorities for intervention to improve F&V consumption.
authors.affiliation: Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA aamuta@hlkn.tamu.edu.
authors.forename: Ann O
authors.initials: AO
authors.lastname: Amuta
authors.affiliation: Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Wura
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Jacobs
authors.affiliation: Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Ehikowoicho E
authors.initials: EE
authors.lastname: Idoko
authors.affiliation: Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Adam E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Barry
authors.affiliation: Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA.
authors.forename: E Lisako J
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: McKyer
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005638:Fruit; D006630:Hispanic or Latino; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D016487:Parenting; D010290:Parents; D011203:Poverty; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012424:Rural Population; D012574:Schools; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013781:Texas; D014675:Vegetables; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: child/adolescent health; health promotion; minority health; nutrition; rural health