title: Religiosity, dietary habit, intake of fruit and vegetable, and vegetarian status among Seventh-Day Adventists in West Malaysia.
abstract: Religion has been shown to be salutary on health, and a possible link between religion and positive health outcomes is diet. Research has shown that religiosity is associated with better diet but most studies were conducted in a multi-denominational context, which might be confounded with theological differences. This study examined the relationship between religiosity and diet within a homogenous group of believers. Data from survey of 574 Seventh-Day Adventists residing in West Malaysia, aged 18-80, were analyzed using multiple regressions. While none of the religious variables were significantly associated with fruit and vegetable intake, a higher level of religiosity was associated with a better dietary habit and vegetarian status. The mixed relationship between religiosity and diet suggest that further research is needed to explore how religion might influence the diet of adherents.
authors.affiliation: Jeffrey Cheah School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Monash University, Sunway Campus, Jalan Lagoon Selatan, 46150, Bandar Sunway, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia. minmin.tan@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Min-Min
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology, Australian Catholic University, 1100 Nudgee Road, Banyo, QLD, 4014, Australia.
authors.forename: Carina K Y
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.affiliation: Jeffrey Cheah School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Monash University, Sunway Campus, Jalan Lagoon Selatan, 46150, Bandar Sunway, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Daniel D
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: Reidpath
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D004032:Diet; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D005638:Fruit; D006801:Humans; D008296:Malaysia; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D033303:Protestantism; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014675:Vegetables; D000066988:Vegetarians; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Diet; Fruit and vegetable intake; Religion; Religiosity; Spirituality; Vegetarian