Gender-based eating norms, the family environment and food intake among Costa Rican adolescents

Abstract

Objective: To examine the association between family environment variables (parenting styles, family meal atmosphere), gender-based stereotypes and food intake in Latin American adolescents. Design: Structural equation modelling applied to cross-sectional data, 2017. Setting: Urban and rural sites of San José, Costa Rica. Participants: n 813; 13-18 years old. Results: Data suggest direct associations between gender-based stereotypes and intake of fruits and vegetables (FV) (β = 0·20, P < 0·05), unhealthy foods (fast food (FF)) (β = -0·24, P < 0·01) and ultra-processed foods (β = -0·15, P < 0·05) among urban girls; intake of legumes among rural girls (β = 0·16, P < 0·05) and intake of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) among rural boys (β = 0·22, P < 0·05). Family meal atmosphere was associated with legume intake (β = 0·19, P < 0·05) among urban boys and FF intake (β = 0·17, P < 0·05) among urban girls. Authoritarian parenting style was associated with FV consumption (β = 0·19, P < 0·05) among rural boys, and with SSB and FF consumption (β = 0·21, P < 0·05; β = 0·14, P < 0·05, respectively) among urban girls. Conclusions: Findings are the first to describe the complex family environment and gender-based stereotypes within the context of a Latin American country. They emphasise the need for culturally relevant measurements to characterise the sociocultural context in which parent-adolescent dyads socialise and influence food consumption.