Dietary quality and overnutrition among adults in Kenya: what role does ICT play?

The effect of Internet use on nutritional intake and health outcomes: new evidence from rural China

Introduction

Internet use is changing nutritional intake and health outcomes, but the results are mixed, and less attention is given to the rural developing regions. Based on the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS) data from 2004 to 2015, this study seeks to better understand the effect of Internet use on nutritional intake and health outcomes.

Methods

An instrumental variable estimation is used to address endogeneity problem.

Results

The results show that Internet use improves the dietary knowledge of rural residents, and thus has a positive impact on dietary quality, such as healthy eating index (HEI) and dietary diversity score (DDS). The higher the dietary quality, the better the nutritional health status. However, results also show that Internet use increases the risk of overweight, and obesity among rural Chinese residents. Because Internet use has significantly reduced the physical activity of rural residents in China. Interestingly, we also find that the Internet increases the risk of chronic diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure, but there is a positive causal relationship between Internet use and the self-assessment score of health.

Discussion

Our findings suggest that there may be a serious lack of awareness of the health risks of chronic diseases among Chinese rural residents. Therefore, policymakers are suggested to consider the possible negative effects when promoting digital development.

Does Internet Use Connect Us to a Healthy Diet? Evidence from Rural China

Dietary patterns in China have changed dramatically over the past few decades as the Internet has become rapidly available. Based on data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey (2006–2011), we use a two-way fixed effects model and an instrumental variable approach to determine the impact of Internet use on the dietary quality of rural residents. The results indicate that Internet use could significantly improve the dietary quality of Chinese rural residents, with an increase of about 10.4% in the China Food Pagoda Score (CFPS), mainly due to the increase in the dietary quality score for five food groups: fruits, meats, eggs, oil, and salt. We also found that Internet use significantly increased the consumption amounts of milk and its products (4 g), fruits (31 g), eggs (8 g), and vegetables (34 g), while also decreasing the intake of salts (2 g) and oil (6 g). A possible mechanism is that Internet use improves the dietary knowledge of rural residents, thus optimizing their dietary structure. Moreover, the effect of the Internet was greater among females and those who prepare food for a family. Rural residents without a college degree enjoyed more benefits. In summary, governments should further promote Internet penetration in rural areas for health purposes.