The Effective Factors for Fruit and Vegetable Consumption among Adults: A Need Assessment Study Based on Trans-Theoretical Model.
BACKGROUND
The World Health Organization recommended consuming at least 5 servings of fruits and vegetables (FV) per day in order to reduce the risk of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). The purpose of this study is to determine the influential factors related to intake of FV among adults in Kermanshah city based on Transtheoritical Model.


METHODS
This is a cross-sectional study which is conducted in Kermanshah city. Participants (n=1230) are selected by multi stage sampling; 30-50 year olds people covered by health centers. In order to collect data, we used a TTM-based questionnaire. The results are analyzed using SPSS-16 and Lisrel 8, with P< 0.05 as statistically significant level.


RESULTS
The mean age of the participants is 37.75 and 65% of them are women .The mean score of knowledge is 2.4; that is, 80% of men and 78% of women in this study are in poor knowledge about FV consumption. In case of fruit and vegetable consumption behavior, 50% and 61% of participants are in pre-contemplation/contemplation stage, respectively. The average number of fruit servings is 1.42 and the average number of vegetable servings is 0.99 per day. Also, ANOVA test results showed a significant correlation between constructs of TTM and stages of change so that individuals' progress through stages of change from pre-contemplation to maintenance added on the scores of self-efficiency, processes of change, and decisional balance.


CONCLUSIONS
This study indicated that, TTM constructs such as self-efficacy, processes of change, and decisional balance are good predictors for FV consumption.
School of Public Health and Research Center for Health Sciences, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, Iran. S_Shahabadi15@yahoo.com.
Seyed Mohammad Mahdi
SM
Hazavehei
Sara
S
Shahabadi
Manoochehr
M
Karami
Mohammad Reza
MR
Saidi
Saeed
S
Bashiriyan
Masoumeh
M
Mahdi-Akhgar
Seyedeh Zeinab
SZ
Hashemi