Food Preferences and Food Choice Determinants in a Polish Adolescents’ COVID-19 Experience (PLACE-19) Study

Abstract

Food preferences are within the most important determinants of food choices; however, little is known about their complex associations, and no studies were conducted in the period of the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of the study was to analyze the association between food preferences and food choice determinants in adolescents aged 15–20 years within the Polish Adolescents’ COVID-19 Experience (PLACE-19) Study. The PLACE-19 Study included a random quota sampling conducted in the whole of Poland and covered a population-based sample of 2448 secondary school students. The food preferences were assessed using a validated Food Preference Questionnaire (FPQ), and the food choices were assessed using a validated Food Choice Questionnaire (FCQ). The statistical analysis comprised k-means clustering and linear regression adjusted for sex and age. Four homogenous clusters of respondents were defined based on the food choice motives—“healthy eaters” (health as the most important determinant of food choices), “hedonists” (convenience, sensory appeal, and price as the most important determinants), “indifferent consumers” (low significance for all determinants), and “demanding consumers” (high significance for all determinants). The preferences for all food categories differed when comparing between clusters presenting various food choice determinants (p < 0.001). The “healthy eaters” were characterized by the highest preference for vegetables; the “hedonists” preferred meat/fish, dairy, and snacks; the “demanding consumers” had a high preference for all food categories, while “indifferent consumers” had a low preference for all food categories. All preference scores were positively associated with mood, convenience, sensory appeal, natural content, and price (p < 0.05). The results confirmed the association between food preferences and food choice determinants in adolescents, as well as allowed adolescents to be clustered into segments to define various needs and motives among the identified segments. For public health purposes, it may be crucial to educate “hedonists,” with a high preference for meat/fish, dairy and snacks, accompanied by convenience, sensory appeal, and price as the most important determinants of their food choices.

Body Mass and Emotional Eating: Emotional Eater Questionnaire (EEQ) in the Polish Adolescents’ COVID-19 Experience (PLACE-19) Study

“…The PLACE-19 Study, which analyzed the various aspects of the life of Polish adolescents (aged 15-20, a typical age for education in the secondary school) in the period of the COVID-19 pandemic, was divided into three phases. During the first phase of the study, the hygienic and personal protective behaviors of adolescents were investigated [22][23][24], while in the second and third phase their eating habits [25][26][27][28][29][30] and psychological aspects of eating behaviors were analyzed, respectively.…”

“…The mean age in the studied group was 16.7 ± 1.13 years (median of 17.0, differing from 15.0 to 20.0; nonparametric distribution), and it did not differ between female (16.7 ± 1.14 years, median of 17.0, differing from 15.0 to 20.0; nonparametric distribution) and male individuals (16.7 ± 1.10 years, median of 16.5, differing from 15.0 to 20.0; nonparametric distribution) (Mann-Whitney U test, p = 0.4110). while in the second and third phase their eating habits [25][26][27][28][29][30] and psychological aspects of eating behaviors were analyzed, respectively. The study of psychological aspects of eating behaviors was carried out from 21 January 2021 to 17 February 2021.…”

The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Food Consumption Behavior: Based on the Perspective of Accounting Data of Chinese Food Enterprises and Economic Theory

“…The COVID-19 crisis has presented unique challenges [ 3 ]; the pandemic has caused one of the worst crises in the world’s economy since the end of World War II [ 4 , 5 ]. COVID-19 has also changed people’s hygiene behaviors [ 6 , 7 ], and affected people’s food choice motive [ 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 ] and appetitive traits [ 14 , 15 ]. The pandemic, and the restrictive measures taken to control the pandemic, have often led to uncertainty in demand and supply disruptions, which have ultimately affected product prices and household food consumption.…”

Association between Food Preferences and Food Habits in a Polish Adolescents’ COVID-19 Experience (PLACE-19) Study

“…The PLACE-19 Study received approval of the Ethics Committee of the Institute of Human Nutrition Sciences of the Warsaw University of Life Sciences, to be conducted in a population-based sample of adolescents [ 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 ]. Both the participants and their parents/legal guardians provided informed consents to participate in the study, and all the procedures were carried out in compliance with the Declaration of Helsinki.…”

“…The PLACE-19 Study consisted of two phases, which assessed different aspects of the life of Polish secondary school students (aged [15][16][17][18][19][20] during the COVID-19 pandemic. The first phase focused on their hygienic and personal protective behaviors [27][28][29], while the second phase analyzed their dietary habits [22][23][24][25][26]. The presented study, similar to the previous one [25], is based on the clustering of the studied sample based on the food preferences assessed while using the Food Preference Questionnaire (FPQ) by Smith et al [30].…”