title: Unhealthy Fat in Street and Snack Foods in Low-Socioeconomic Settings in India: A Case Study of the Food Environments of Rural Villages and an Urban Slum.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To describe the food environment in rural villages and an urban slum setting in India with reference to commercially available unbranded packaged snacks and street foods sold by vendors, and to analyze the type and quantity of fat in these foods.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional.
  
  
  METHODS
  Two low-income villages in Haryana and an urban slum in Delhi.
  
  
  METHODS
  Street vendors (n = 44) were surveyed and the nutritional content of snacks (n = 49) sold by vendors was analyzed.
  
  
  METHODS
  Vendors' awareness and perception of fats and oils, as well as the type of snacks sold, along with the content and quality of fat present in the snacks.
  
  
  METHODS
  Descriptive statistics of vendor survey and gas chromatography to measure fatty acid content in snacks.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A variety of snacks were sold, including those in unlabeled transparent packages and open glass jars. Mean fat content in snacks was 28.8 g per 100-g serving in rural settings and 29.6 g per 100-g serving in urban settings. Sampled oils contained high levels of saturated fats (25% to 69% total fatty acids) and trans fats (0.1% to 30% of total fatty acids).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Interventions need to target the manufacturers of oils and fats used in freshly prepared products to improve the quality of foods available in the food environment of low-socioeconomic groups in India.
authors.affiliation: Indian Institute for Public Health-Delhi, Public Health Foundation of India, Haryana, India.
authors.forename: Vidhu
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Gupta
authors.affiliation: Menzies Centre for Health Policy, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia. Electronic address: shauna.downs@sydney.edu.au.
authors.forename: Shauna M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Downs
authors.affiliation: Indian Institute for Public Health-Delhi, Public Health Foundation of India, Haryana, India.
authors.forename: Suparna
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ghosh-Jerath
authors.affiliation: London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and Leverhulme Centre for Integrative Research on Agriculture and Health, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Karen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Lock
authors.affiliation: Indian Institute for Public Health-Delhi, Public Health Foundation of India and All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi, India.
authors.forename: Archna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Singh
mesh_terms: D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004041:Dietary Fats; D005502:Food / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005522:Food Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D007194:India / Q000453:epidemiology; D011204:Poverty Areas; D012424:Rural Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D062410:Snacks; D044242:Trans Fatty Acids; D014505:Urban Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*
chemical_list: D004041:Dietary Fats; D044242:Trans Fatty Acids
keywords: fatty acids; food environment; low- or middle-income country; snacks; trans fatty acids