Nutrient Prices and Other Socio-Economic and Health Determinants of the Body Mass Index of Canadians

Food prices, taxes, and obesity in Canada and its implications for food taxation

“…The methodology is based on the previous work of Clark et al (2014). Data on BMI of Canadian adults (eighteen years of age or older), socio-economic data and other data related to individual health status of individuals is available from the personal characteristics data that comes from Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS) (Statistics Canada, 2012b) and the personal health indicators of Canadians (Statistics Canada, 2012c).…”

“…Another popular approach is to measure the health outcome directly rather than indirectly through changes in some obesogenic nutrient, such as fat from food purchased for at-home consumption. For example, there are several studies that relate the BMI of populations to various socio-economic variables including prices of relevant goods (e.g., Chou et al, 2004;Boizot-Szantai, & Fabrice, 2005;Strum & Datar, 2005;2008;Auld & Powell, 2009;Goldman, Lakdawalla, & Zheng, 2009;Clark, et al, 2014). Chen et al (2002) use similar methods to examine blood pressure.…”

“…The proportion of Canadians who are overweight differs by sex, with 59.2% of Canadian males overweight in 2009 compared to 62% in 2013 and 43.9% of females overweight in 2009 compared to 45.1% in 2013. These increases have led to calls for policies to control obesity (see Clark et al, 2014).…”

“…One solution to this problem is to include the prices of dietary elements in place of quantities since, while quantities may not have been observed, prices typically are. Nutrient prices are included in the BMI studies of Goldman, Lakdawalla and Zheng (2009) and Clark et al (2014) whereas food group prices are included in studies by Chou, Grossman and Saffer (2004), Boizot-Szantai and Fabrice (2005) and Strum and Datar (2005) and (2008). In this study we discuss some considerations for the determination of the appropriate set of prices to use within a study of obesity.…”

“…By far the most popular approach in this area of research is the use of food group prices (e.g., Chou, Grossman, & Saffer, 2004;Boizot-Szantai & Fabrice, 2005;Strum & Datar, 2005;2008;along with Beatty & LaFrance, 2005;Chouinard et al, 2005;Smed, Jensen, & Denver, 2007;Allais, Bertail, & Nichele, 2010). Fewer studies use nutrient prices (Goldman, Lakdawala, & Zheng, 2009;Clark et al, 2014).…”