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Table 3 Relationships between the nutritional home environment and children's intake of fruit and vegetables using ANOVA (n = 279).

From: Relationships between the home environment and physical activity and dietary patterns of preschool children: a cross-sectional study

Descriptive Construct

Nutritional Home Environment Item

Children's Dietary Patterns Mean Fruit and Vegetable score (range = 0–21)

p value

  

≤ 1/4 plate

1/3 plate

1/2 plate

> 1/2 plate

 

Parental behaviours associated with food

Average portion size served to child

8.3a

10.6b

10.9b

11.0b

0.002

  

Frequently

Sometimes

Occasionally

Rarely/Never

 
 

Food allowed to be eaten in front of TV

9.3a

10.1ab

10.4ab

11.8b

0.01

 

Acceptance of wasted food

8.8a

9.9a

10.2a

11.8a

0.04

 

Remind child to 'eat up'

9.7a

11.6b

10.5ab

12.3b

0.007

 

Offer food rewards/incentives to eat main meals

9.0a

10.9a

10.9a

10.5a

0.04

 

Restrict fruit juice

10.9a

10.4ab

11.3a

9.2b

0.02

 

Restrict high fat/sugar snack foods

11.1a

9.4b

9.4ab

8.4ab

0.009

 

Restrict second helpings

14.4a

9.6a

11.9a

10.1a

0.04

Availability of food in home

Take-away food purchased

8.5a

9.8a

10.8a

11.3a

0.03

  

0–2.9 kg

3–5.9 kg

6–7.9 kg

≥8 kg

 
 

Amount of fruit

9.2a

11.0b

11.7b

11.9b

<0.001

  

0–1.9 l

2–2.9 l

3–3.9 l

≥4 l

 
 

Amount of fruit juice in home

10.4ab

11.6a

9.2ab

8.9b

0.01

  

0 boxes

0.5 boxes

1–2 boxes

>2 boxes

 
 

Amount of muesli bars/breakfast bars in home

10.9a

10.9ab

9.2b

10.5ab

0.04

  1. a,b Superscripts indicate which categories show a statistically significant difference using Bonferroni correction: same letter indicates no difference, different letter indicates a difference.