To estimate the prevalence of overweight and obesity among children and adolescents in north Jordan and to evaluate the dietary knowledge of their mothers.

Cross-sectional study.

Schools, Irbid, Jordan.

Male and female participants (n 516) aged 6–18 years.

Thirty per cent of our sample population was overweight or obese, and about 11 % was underweight. Males tend to have a higher BMI and waist circumference than females except in the age group ≥15 years. Children who ate in front of the television tended to have higher BMI and waist circumference. Forty per cent of the mothers answered four or more questions correctly out of six, which indicated a sufficient level of nutritional knowledge.

The study revealed that obesity is a growing health problem in children and adolescents in north Jordan. This finding is considered a serious concern for public health and calls for the creation of new prevention programmes at the individual, family and community level.

Nutrition plays a central role in health, with poor dietary habits and nutritional intake being associated with a range of chronic diseases. The aim was to examine grocery purchasing behaviour in relation to chewing ability, dietary knowledge and socio-economic status (SES) among older adults.

Data were collected by mailed survey in 2008. Grocery purchasing was measured using a sixteen-item index of compliance of food purchasing with dietary guidelines. Self-reported number of teeth was classified as an inadequate dentition if less than twenty-one teeth were present. Chewing ability was based on a five-item chewing index. Dietary knowledge was collected using twenty true/false items. SES was assessed using a subjective social status rating representing where people stand in society.

Population survey in Adelaide, South Australia.

Adults aged 60–71 years.

Responses were collected from 444 persons (response rate = 68·8 %). Among dentate persons, 24·4 % had an inadequate dentition with 10·3 % defined as ‘chewing deficient’. Multivariate regression coefficients adjusted for age, sex and income showed chewing deficiency (−5·8) and low SES (−3·6) was associated (P < 0·05) with lower grocery purchasing scores, but dietary knowledge was not statistically significant.

For older adults, chewing deficiency and lower social status were associated with lower compliance with dietary guidelines, independent of dietary knowledge.

To assess knowledge of dietary and behaviour-related determinants of non-communicable disease (NCD) of urban Senegalese women.

A cross-sectional, population study using an interviewer-administered knowledge questionnaire, developed and validated for this study. The questionnaire consisted of 24 items with six scores measuring knowledge of: (1) diet- and behaviour-related causes of NCD; (2) diet quality–NCD relationship; (3) fruit and vegetable link with NCD; (4) health consequences of obesity; (5) causes of cardiovascular disease (CVD); and (6) causes of certain cancers.

A random sample of 301 women aged 20–50 years.

The knowledge scores developed suggest that the health consequences of obesity (mean score of 65.4%) were best understood followed by causes of CVD (mean score of 60.6%), because obesity, smoking, high blood cholesterol and dietary fat were well recognised as risk factors for CVD. Subjects scored least for their knowledge of the protective effect of fruit and vegetables (mean score of 19.9%). Knowledge of causes of certain cancers (mean score of 36.1%) was also low. Women who worked outside the home had better knowledge for two scores but otherwise no relationship was found between knowledge and literacy, formal education or body mass index.

Findings suggest reasonable overall knowledge concerning diet and behaviour with NCD, especially given the relatively new context of the obesity epidemic in Senegal. However, there was poor knowledge of the benefit of eating fruit and vegetables and other preventable causes of certain cancers. Education targeting the benefits of vegetables and fruit may have the greatest impact on NCD prevention.