School Food Policies Related to Soft Drink and Fruit Juice Consumption as a Function of Education Type in Flanders, Belgium

Francisca Marro, Peter Bottenberg, Wolfgang Jacquet and Luc Martens
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Francisca Marro: Department of Paediatric Dentistry, PAECOMEDIS Research Cluster, Gent University, 9000 Gent, Belgium
Peter Bottenberg: Department of Educational Sciences EDWE-LOCI, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
Wolfgang Jacquet: Department of Educational Sciences EDWE-LOCI, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
Luc Martens: Department of Paediatric Dentistry, PAECOMEDIS Research Cluster, Gent University, 9000 Gent, Belgium

IJERPH, 2019, vol. 16, issue 15, 1-9

Abstract: Recent data on erosive tooth wear (ETW) in Belgium have associated a vocational/technical type of education with ETW risk. Since the role of schools is essential to the promotion of healthy diets, this study aimed to investigate school food policies (SFP) related to soft drink and fruit juice consumption and to detect differences among schools in Flanders, Belgium (BE-F). An online questionnaire related to the control of acidic beverages and promotion of healthy drinking habits was sent to all Flemish secondary schools. For analysis, schools ( n = 275) were grouped by type of education (vocational secondary education (VSE) and general secondary education (GSE)), and by socioeconomic status. Multiple factor analyses (MFA) were performed to identify schools with a similar SFP profile. Additionally, descriptive analyses were performed to determine other associations. Overall, 44% of schools in BE-F claimed to have written SFP related to the consumption of soft drinks. SFP expressly prohibiting or limiting acidic beverages were significantly more frequent in GSE schools ( p < 0.05), where a higher economic status was present. This study shows that a considerable group of schools in BE-F have no or incomplete rules concerning acidic beverage consumption. Such rules differ between types of education, with VSE schools reporting less control regarding the consumption of drinks.

Keywords: Erosive tooth wear; school food policies; Type of education; socioeconomic school background; soft drinks regulations (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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