Association between nutrition knowledge and nutritional intake in middle-aged men from northern France

Objective:
The way in which nutrition knowledge transforms into dietary behaviour and nutrient intake may vary among populations. Therefore, the goal of the study was to examine whether nutrition knowledge is associated with nutritional intake in middle-aged men who are at major risk of cardiovascular disease.

Design:
Cross-sectional population study aimed at comparing the response to a nutrition quiz with food habits and nutrient intake determined by a 3-day food record.

Setting:
Men of the Urban Community of Lille (France) examined at home.

Subjects:
361 men aged 45-64 y, randomly selected from the electoral rolls.

Results:
Subjects were separated in a high-score (n = 59) and a low-score (n = 41) group according to their responses to the nutrition quiz. Subjects in the high-score group had better educational and higher income levels than those from the low-score group. Multivariate analysis, adjusting on educational and socio-economic levels and other confounding variables – such as age, body mass index, cigarette smoking, physical activity and energy intake underreporting – showed that subjects in the high-score group were more often consumers of olive oil (36 vs. 12%; P = 0.06), cheese (85 vs, 76%; P < 0.01) or cereals (27 vs. 15%; P < 0.04) and less often consumers of sunflower oil (51 vs. 68%; P < 0.02) or dry vegetables (12 vs. 22%; p < 0.05) than those in the low-score group. Subjects in the high-score group had lower intakes of fat (89 +/- 24 vs. 104 +/- 38 g/d; p = 0.04) and especially of monounsaturated fat of animal origin (23 +/- 9 vs. 29 +/- 13 g/d; p = 0.01) than individuals in the low-score group.

Conclusion:
Nutrition quiz score is associated with specific patterns of food choices and nutrient intake suggesting that nutrition knowledge influences dietary behaviour in middle-aged men from Northern France.