Is There Still a French Eating Model? A Taxonomy of Eating Behaviors in Adults Living in the Paris Metropolitan Area in 2010

Abstract

BackgroundMeal times in France still represent an important moment in everyday life. The model of three rigorously synchronized meals is still followed by a majority of people, while meal frequencies have flattened in other European or North-American countries. We aimed to examine the “French model” of eating behavior by identifying and characterizing distinct meal patterns.MethodsAnalyses were based on data from the SIRS cohort, a representative survey of the adult population in the Paris area. A clustering algorithm was applied to meal variables (number, time, location, with whom the meal is usually shared and activities associated with meals). Regression models were used to investigate associations between patterns and socio-demographic, social environment and perceived food quality variables.ResultsFive different patterns were identified among 2994 participants. The first three types (prevalence 33%, 17% and 24%) followed a three-meal pattern, with differences in locations and social interactions mainly related to time constraints and age. More marked differences were observed in the remaining two types. In the fourth type (prevalence 13%), individuals ate one or two meals per day, often with an irregular schedule, at home and in front of the television. They frequently were unemployed and had lower income. Breakfast skipping, increased snacking and a low adherence to dietary guidelines suggested that this behavior might have health consequences. In the fifth type (12%), people also ate two meals or less per day, possibly with the same consequences on food quality. However, meals were often taken outside the home, in social settings, and individuals following this pattern were typically active, integrated, young people, suggesting that this pattern might be an adaptation to a modern urban lifestyle.ConclusionsWhile a majority of the population still follows the three-meal pattern, our analysis distinguished two other eating patterns associated with specific sociological profiles.

Adherence to the French Eating Model is inversely associated with overweight and obesity: results from a large sample of French adults

“…In accordance with previous data (11,20,21,(47)(48)(49) , we found that the three-meal-a-day pattern is still the prevailing pattern in France and that people generally had their meals at set times. However, in our sample many individuals had only two meals a day (i.e.…”

“…Fewer individuals reported having their meals alone (weekday lunch: 27•5 %, weekend lunch: 12•7 %). By contrast, in another study including younger individuals (21•5 % were aged 18-29 years v. 5•0 % in our sample), meals were as much taken alone as with family (20) . Finally, our data emphasise that meals were mainly considered pleasurable moments.…”

Meal patterns across ten European countries – results from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) calibration study

“…In the present report, we examined meal patterns during 1995-2000 in an adult European population aged 35-74 years and found that most countries still shared uniformity in the three-meal-a-day pattern at that time, with a high proportion reporting consumption of breakfast, lunch and dinner across all countries, even though lunch was less frequently reported in Nordic and central European countries than in Mediterranean countries. This three-meal continuity has also been reported in more recent studies in Nordic (31) , French (32)(33)(34) and Flemish (35) populations. However, for most central and northern countries, snacks contributed more to daily energy intake than did breakfast or lunch and in some countries snacks contributed nearly as much energy as did dinner.…”

Energy, nutrient and food content of snacks in French adults

“…This high percentage of individuals who snacked attained levels observed in previous work in the US [ 3 ]. Contrary to other countries, the French daily eating pattern is fairly synchronized [ 40 ], with three main meals per day [ 8 ], generally at set times and based on social eating habits [ 41 ]. Compared to a French representative survey, percentages of individuals eating a morning or an afternoon snack were higher in our study (28% and 45% vs. 10% and 35%) [ 42 ].…”