Understanding and Use of Nutrition Labels of Prepackaged Food by University Students: A Cross-Sectional Study in Chongqing, China

Effects of Covid-19-related anxiety on overeating and weight gain in a diverse college sample

The outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic has been linked with caloric overeating and weight gain. We employed a mediation analysis to determine whether pandemic-associated overeating was a direct effect of Covid-19-related anxiety (affect regulation theory) or mediated by a coping mechanism of escape eating (escape theory). A diverse pool of college students participated in a repeated cross-sectional study during three separate waves: May 2021 (wave 1, n = 349), December 2021 (wave 2, n = 253), and March 2022 (wave 3, n = 132). The results revealed a significant indirect effect of Covid-19-related anxiety on high-caloric overeating mediated by escape eating, but no direct path between Covid-19-related anxiety and caloric overeating. Analysis of racial/ethnic status uncovered significantly greater Covid-weight gain in Hispanic participants compared with White, Black, and Asian participants. Our results suggest that Covid-19 weight gain is a byproduct of a mediated escape mechanism differentially affecting racial/ethnic groups.

Food safety-related practices among residents aged 18-75 years during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study in Southwest China

BACKGROUND

Good food safety practices are essential to minimizing foodborne diseases. The present study explored the food safety-related practices of residents during the COVID-19 pandemic in Southwest China and identified the impacting factors.

METHODS

Residents aged 18-75 years from Guizhou, Yunnan, Sichuan, and Chongqing, China, were included in our study. The convenience sampling method was used to select participants, and face-to-face surveys were conducted in households and communities to collect data. Descriptive statistics including sociodemographic characteristics of respondents and weighted percentages were obtained and the log-binomial regression was used to evaluate the influencing factors associated with food safety-related practices.

RESULTS

Overall, 7,848 respondents were involved, with 97.5% efficacy. Disparities in food safety-related practices were observed between males and females, with the former performing poorer practices than the latter (70.5% vs. 68.0%, respectively). Notably, paying attention to nutrition labels when shopping for prepackaged foods was the worst practice. Age, ethnicity, region, occupation, education level, and income were identified as significant determinants of food safety-related practices. Moreover, in comparison to males, females were more likely to acquire pertinent knowledge from diverse sources, including social media, family members/ friends, books/ newspapers/ magazines, experts, and food sales staff (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Males performed inferior food safety-related practices than females during the COVID-19 pandemic in Southwest China. It is suggested that future food safety education programs should incorporate diverse targeted approaches, with emphasis on males. The role of mainstream media in promoting food safety practices should be expanded and prioritized in the forthcoming initiatives.

Front-of-Pack Nutrition Labelling Schemes: Where Are We Now?

The development of nutritional policies plays a vital role in health promotion [...].