Adolescent Student Use of School-Based Salad Bars.
BACKGROUND
Childhood obesity continues to be a public health problem in the United States. Increasing consumption of fruits and vegetables (F/V) is one strategy for decreasing high consumption of energy-dense, high-fat foods, thereby improving weight status. Many Orleans Parish public schools were provided with salad bars (SBs) to augment school lunch with increased access to F/V. This study identified factors associated with student use of SBs.


METHODS
Surveys examining SB use, demographics, food preference, nutrition knowledge, and social support were administered to students in the 7th to 12th grades (N = 702) in Orleans Parish (New Orleans, Louisiana). Generalized estimating equations, which incorporate clustering at the school level, helped to determine associations between independent variables and SB use.


RESULTS
Sixty percent of participants were SB users. Non-African-American students were more likely to be SB users than African-American students (odds ratio [OR] = 2.35, confidence interval [CI]: 1.35-4.07) and students who had high preference for healthy food were more likely to use the SB than those who had low preference (OR = 2.41, CI: 1.44-4.01). Students who encouraged others to consume F/V were more likely to use the SB than those who did not (p = .015).


CONCLUSIONS
Individual and interpersonal factors related to SB use can provide guidance in the development of school-based interventions to increase SB use and F/V consumption.
Utah State University, Emma Eccles Jones College of Education and Human Services, Department of Health, Physical Education, and Recreation, 7000 Old Main Hill, Logan, Utah, 84322. lori.andersen@usu.edu.
Lori
L
Andersen
Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, 1440 Canal Street, Suite 2031, New Orleans, LA 70112. myersl@tulane.edu.
Leann
L
Myers
Tulane Prevention Research Center, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Department of Global Community Health and Behavioral Sciences, 1440 Canal Street, Suite 1829, #8319 New Orleans, LA 70112. komalley@tulane.edu.
Keelia
K
O'Malley
Tulane Prevention Research Center, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Department of Global Community Health and Behavioral Sciences, 1440 Canal Street, Suite 1829, #8319 New Orleans, LA 70112.. arathert@tulane.edu.
Adrienne R
AR
Mundorf
Healthy Food Environments, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 4770 Buford Highway, Mailstop F-77, Atlanta, GA 30341. dmharris@cdc.gov.
Diane M
DM
Harris
Prevention Research Center, Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Department of Global Community Health and Behavioral Sciences, 1440 Canal Street, Suite 2201, New Orleans, LA 70112.. cjohnso5@tulane.edu.
Carolyn C
CC
Johnson
D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D001294:Attitude to Health; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D005518:Food Preferences / Q000523:psychology*; D005522:Food Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012574:Schools / Q000458:organization & administration; D013334:Students / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014481:United States; D014675:Vegetables
adolescents; childhood obesity; fruit/vegetable access; minority health; school salad bars