Status geracional e consumo de alimentos ultraprocessados entre participantes de programa público de promoção da saúde

Abstract

To evaluate the association between the consumption of ultra-processed foods (UPF) and the generational status of participants in a public health promotion program in Belo Horizonte-MG. This is a cross-sectional study conducted from the baseline of a Randomized Controlled Community Trial. A total of 18 units from the Health Gym Program (PAS) were randomly sampled for the study. All PAS users aged 20 years or older were invited to participate. Sociodemographic characteristics (age, sex, marital status, occupation, education, and per capita monthly income), UPF consumption (% of total Kcal), health status classification, regular physical activity, and self-reported morbidity were analyzed. Weight (kg) and height (m) were measured to calculate Body Mass Index. Generational status was classified according to participants' year of birth into: raditionalists (1925 to 1945), Baby Boomers (BB - 1946 to 1964), Generation X (GX - 1965 to 1980), and Generation Y (GY - 1981 to 1993). UPF consumption was assessed from the average of two 24-hour Dietary Recalls (R24h), applied on non-consecutive days. The reported foods were categorized according to the NOVA classification, where ready-to-eat or heat-and-eat foods containing little or no whole food were classified as UPF. Household measures of UPF and all other foods reported in the R24h were weighed and subsequently tabulated in the Brazil Nutri Program. Finally, with the support of food composition tables and labels registering caloric values, UPF consumption was evaluated. For analysis purposes, the percentage of the diet derived from UPF was calculated. Data analysis was performed using STATA software (p<0.05). Categorical variables were presented as percentages, while continuous variables were presented as medians and percentiles (P25; P75). To compare UPF consumption between generations, Pearson’s Chi-square test with Bonferroni post hoc and Kruskall-Wallis with Dunn post hoc were used. Of the total respondents (N=3,414), 18.1% were from the Traditionalist generation, 59.0% from the BB, 19.6% from the GX, and 3.3% from the GY. The median daily UPF consumption was 26.1% (16.1%-37.4%) of the total dietary Kcal. When differences between generations were investigated, higher UPF consumption was observed among BB (25% vs. 23.1%, p-value=0.008), GX (29% vs. 23.1%), and GY (32.6% vs. 23.1%) when compared to Traditionalists (p-value<0.008). Younger generations reported higher UPF consumption compared to Traditionalists. These results highlight the need to invest in actions promoting adequate and healthy eating focused on younger generations, in addition to encouraging the continued lower consumption of UPF among individuals from the Traditionalist generation.