Date of Conferral

2023

Degree

Doctor of Public Health (DrPH)

School

Public Health

Advisor

Vibha Kumar

Abstract

Chronic disease accounts for 86% of the annual health care expenditures in the United States. Lower socioeconomic status groups are vulnerable to the effects of nutritional deficiencies, and the connection between chronic disease and nutrition may be central to public health initiatives. The current study provided insight into the behaviors of nutritional choice for at-risk populations for many of the chronic diseases associated with nutritional education and policy which influence healthy eating patterns across multiple settings. The purpose of this quantitative study with a retrospective cross-sectional design was to observe any differences for the uptake of plant-based compliant nutrition and awareness of MyPlate nutritional guidelines by looking at whether respondents were familiar with MyPlate, looked up MyPlate on the internet or tried MyPlate with covariables income, gender, race, and education. The instrument was survey data from the 2017-2018 National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey adult population age 19 and older (N = 5712) using the health belief model framework. An analysis of variance (ANOVA) with regression showed income was not a factor for nutritional awareness or uptake of plant-based compliant foods. Using an ANCOVA, there was a mean difference for males in uptake of plant-based compliant nutrition and awareness of MyPlate. There was a mean difference among race and education level for awareness. The application to professional practice may provide positive social change through public health awareness programs and policy on nutritional awareness to increase health literacy and reduce chronic disease rates among lower socioeconomic populations in the United States.

Download

Share

 
COinS