title: Unhealthy food consumption in adolescence: role of sedentary behaviours and modifiers in 11-, 13- and 15-year-old Italians.
abstract: Unhealthy eating behaviours increase with age and have been associated with adverse health consequences in adulthood. We examined the influence of screen-based sedentary behaviours (SBs) on unhealthy food consumption, such as energy-dense foods and sweetened drinks, among a representative sample of nearly 60 000 adolescents and assessed the role of possible modifiers.
  
  
  
  Data come from the Italian 2009-10 Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) survey. Data on Eating patterns, SBs, physical activity, peers network, BMI and socio-economic status (SES) were collected following the HBSC study protocol. Hierarchical logistic regression models were used.
  
  
  
  Unhealthy food consumption was significantly associated with a lower intake of fruit and vegetables and with the increase of SBs in both sexes and in all ages. The risk was interestingly higher in normal weight adolescents, in those with wider relationships with peers and in low SES children.
  
  
  
  This study adds evidence to support the importance of investing more resources in educational initiatives both to increase parents' awareness to support adolescents on dietary choices and on time spent in screen-based behaviours, independently of their adiposity status; and to develop youth's ability to access and appropriately use media and technologies. Policy makers should also increase their attention on introducing regulatory policies on television food advertising to which youth are exposed.
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Public Health and Paediatrics, University of Torino, Torino, Italy alberto.borraccino@unito.it.
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Borraccino
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Public Health and Paediatrics, University of Torino, Torino, Italy.
authors.forename: Patrizia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Lemma
authors.affiliation: 2 Department of Clinical and Biological Sciences, University of Torino, Torino, Italy.
authors.forename: Paola
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Berchialla
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Public Health and Paediatrics, University of Torino, Torino, Italy.
authors.forename: Nazario
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Cappello
authors.affiliation: 3 Child and Adolescent Health Research Unit, School of Medicine, University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Joanna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Inchley
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Public Health and Paediatrics, University of Torino, Torino, Italy.
authors.forename: Paola
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Dalmasso
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Public Health and Paediatrics, University of Torino, Torino, Italy.
authors.forename: Lorena
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Charrier
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Public Health and Paediatrics, University of Torino, Torino, Italy.
authors.forename: Franco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Cavallo
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002253:Carbonated Beverages / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D002648:Child; D059305:Diet, High-Fat / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D008297:Male; D057185:Sedentary Behavior; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013690:Television / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D018910:Video Games / Q000706:statistics & numerical data