Changes in the food and drink consumption patterns of Australian women during the COVID-19 pandemic

OBJECTIVE

This paper uses data from the seventh fortnightly Coronavirus (COVID-19) Survey sent to women in the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health to investigate the relationship between the COVID-19 pandemic and the food and drink consumption of women born in 1946-51, 1973-78 and 1989-95.

METHODS

A survey about changes in fruit, vegetable, discretionary food, takeaway and sugary drink consumption during the pandemic was emailed on 22 July 2020 to 28,709 women in three cohorts of the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health. Thematic qualitative analysis was conducted on comments about changes in consumption, and basic quantitative analysis was included for context.

RESULTS

There were significant associations between age and all categories of food and drink consumption. Women wrote of lifestyle changes and choices during lockdowns, comfort and emotional eating, and access to food and drink changing their consumption behaviours.

CONCLUSIONS

The COVID-19 pandemic and interventions had both positive and negative impacts on the food and drink consumption behaviours of Australian women.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH

These findings can be used to directly influence practice around healthy food and drink consumption, highlighting enablers, including being at home, and barriers, including mental health, that should be considered.

The Impact of Education and Lifestyle Factors on Disability-Free Life Expectancy From Mid-Life to Older Age: A Multi-Cohort Study

Objectives: Low education and unhealthy lifestyle factors such as obesity, smoking, and no exercise are modifiable risk factors for disability and premature mortality. We aimed to estimate the individual and joint impact of these factors on disability-free life expectancy (DFLE) and total life expectancy (TLE).

Methods: Data (n = 22,304) were from two birth cohorts (1921–26 and 1946–51) of the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health and linked National Death Index between 1996 and 2016. Discrete-time multi-state Markov models were used to assess the impact on DFLE and TLE.

Results: Compared to the most favourable combination of education and lifestyle factors, the least favourable combination (low education, obesity, current/past smoker, and no exercise) was associated with a loss of 5.0 years TLE, 95% confidence interval (95%CI): 3.2–6.8 and 6.4 years DFLE (95%CI: 4.8–7.8) at age 70 in the 1921–26 cohort. Corresponding losses in the 1946–51 cohort almost doubled (TLE: 11.0 years and DFLE: 13.0 years).

Conclusion: Individual or co-ocurrance of lifestyle risk factors were associated with a significant loss of DFLE, with a greater loss in low-educated women and those in the 1946–51 cohort.

Giving birth in Ethiopia: a spatial and multilevel analysis to determine availability and factors associated with healthcare facility births

OBJECTIVE

To assess spatial variations in the use of healthcare facilities for birth and to identify associated factors.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional analysis of population- and healthcare facility-based data.

SETTING

Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey (EDHS 2016) linked to Service Provision Assessment data (SPA 2014).

POPULATION

A sample of 6954 women who gave birth in the 5 years preceding EDHS 2016 and 717 healthcare facilities providing delivery care.

METHODS

Secondary data analysis of linked population and health facility data was conducted. Multilevel and spatial analyses were conducted to identify key determinants of women's use of health facilities for birth and to assess spatial clustering of facility births.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE

Health facility birth.

RESULTS

A one-unit increase in the mean score of the readiness of health facilities to provide basic emergency obstetric care (EmOC) was associated with a two-fold increase in the odds of facility birthing (adjusted odds ratio, aOR, 2.094, 95% CI 1.187-3.694). A woman's attendance for at least four antenatal care visits was significantly associated with facility birth (aOR 8.863, 95% CI 6.748-11.640). Distance to a healthcare facility was inversely related to a woman's use of facility birthing (aOR 0.967, 95% CI 0.944-0.991). Women in the richest wealth quintile were also more likely to have facility births (aOR 2.892, 95% CI 2.199-3.803).

CONCLUSIONS

There were geographic variations in facility births in Ethiopia, revealing critical gaps in service availability and readiness. It is important to ensure that health facilities are in a state of readiness to provide EmOC.

TWEETABLE ABSTRACT

Failure to ensure health facility readiness is associated with failure to give birth at a healthcare facility.