The impact of changes in dietary knowledge on adult overweight and obesity in China

Abstract

Overweight and obesity are rapidly growing threats in China. Improvement in dietary knowledge can potentially prevent overweight and obesity, conditions which are receiving substantial attention from international organizations and governments. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of changes in dietary knowledge on adult overweight and obesity, using a balanced panel data consisting of 10,401 samples from the 2006, 2009, and 2011 iterations of the China Health and Nutrition Survey. Results indicate that overweight and obesity are becoming increasingly problematic in China, and the level of dietary knowledge among Chinese adults needs improvement. Moreover, the empirical results indicate that changes in dietary knowledge among adults has no significant influence on adult overweight and obesity, a likely result of lacking systematic dietary knowledge and having inadequate guidance on overweight/obesity-related behaviors.

Explaining Income-Related Inequalities in Dietary Knowledge: Evidence from the China Health and Nutrition Survey

“…These studies consistently found that there was a disparity in nutrition knowledge between different income groups, resulting in lower income people having the lowest nutrition knowledge [10]. Although both dietary knowledge and nutrition knowledge emphasize the importance of healthy eating, nutrition knowledge is more concentrated on nutrients inside the food and its association with disease, whereas dietary knowledge focuses more on the importance of a balanced diet and physical exercise [5]. In a systematic review, despite the availability of a previous study focusing on nutrition knowledge, to date, there are very limited studies focusing on dietary knowledge [11,12].…”

“…Unhealthy food also plays an important role in the development of the high prevalence of overweight and obesity. It is estimated by the National Health Commission of China that the prevalence of overweight and obesity jumped from 22.85% to 30.15% and 7.1% to 11.9% from 2002 to 2015, respectively [5]. People who are overweight or obese show potentially unhealthy changes in metabolism, and thus have a high risk of suffering from various chronic diseases.…”

“…People who are overweight or obese show potentially unhealthy changes in metabolism, and thus have a high risk of suffering from various chronic diseases. This may impose a heavy burden on the social security system of China [5].…”

Gender differences in the relationship between dietary energy and macronutrients intake and body weight outcomes in Chinese adults

“…Imbalanced dietary energy and macronutrient intake is associated with weight gain and increased risk of chronic non-communicable diseases that kills approximately 3 million people worldwide each year [1,2]. According to the Chinese Residents Nutrition and Chronic Disease Status Report, the obesity rates of Chinese adults aged 18 and above increased from 4.8% in 2002 to 11.9% in 2015 [3].…”

Obesity, lifestyle behaviors and dyslipidemia among Chinese adults aged 45 and older

“…Over the past two decades, Chinese people have experienced the living environment and unsatisfactory lifestyle changes, such as reduced physical activity, more stressed and long-term sedentary work (1-4). Accordingly, the prevalence of overweight and obesity are rapidly increasing in China (5,6). Scientific research has confirmed that overweight and obesity is an important risk factor to induce dyslipidemia, and dyslipidemia plays an important role in the formation and development of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) (7)(8)(9).…”