Abilities to Use Nutrition Labels among Consumers in 5 Southern Provinces: Pattalung, Satun, Pattani, Trang and Songkhla
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Abstract
Objective: To survey the abilities to use nutrition labels among patients with chronic diseases, third year vocational students, students in grade 12 and homemakers in 5 southern provinces including Pattalung, Satun, Pattani, Trang, and Songkhla. Methods: The survey was conducted in 4,076 subjects living in 5 southern provinces consisting of 970 outpatients with chronic diseases in 17 conveniently chosen health care facilities with various sizes, 829 third year vocational students from 13 randomly selected schools and 1,160 students in grade 12 in 22 randomly selected schools, and 1,117 homemakers from 19 randomly selected villages or communities and 200 dwellers of Pattani who shopped at a large discount store in the area. The study employed a 20 items self-administered questionnaire developed in the study to assess basic knowledge on nutrition label, knowledge on nutrition, information searching ability on nutrition label, ability in nutrition calculation, ability to compare 2 products and ability to select products based on health conditions. Results: Patients with chronic diseases showed a low level of ability to use nutrition labels especially that on calculation based on information on the labels (mean 0.32+0.37 from the full score of one) and that on the selection of products based on health conditions (mean 0.45+0.35). Mean scores of abilities in information searching and comparison of two products based on nutrition were at 0.57-0.58. The results in third year vocational students, students in grade 12 and homemakers exhibited the same pattern, i.e., abilities on calculation and selection of products based on health conditions scored lower than those of information searching and comparison of two products based on nutrition. Factors affecting ability for information searching were being female, younger age, higher levels of education, higher levels of knowledge on nutrition and nutrition labels. Factors affecting ability for nutrition calculation, ability to compare nutrition information between 2 products and ability to select products with health conditions were higher levels of ability to search for information, knowledge on nutrition and nutrition labels and higher education. Conclusion: Patients with chronic diseases showed a low level of ability to use nutrition labels. Calculation based on information on the labels and the selection of products based on health conditions were the skills all groups in the study exhibited a low level of skill compared to the other skills. Basic knowledge on the nutrition label, nutrition knowledge and ability on information searching on the labels were important factors affecting the ability to use nutrition labels.
Article Details
ผลการวิจัยและความคิดเห็นที่ปรากฏในบทความถือเป็นความคิดเห็นและอยู่ในความรับผิดชอบของผู้นิพนธ์ มิใช่ความเห็นหรือความรับผิดชอบของกองบรรณาธิการ หรือคณะเภสัชศาสตร์ มหาวิทยาลัยสงขลานครินทร์ ทั้งนี้ไม่รวมความผิดพลาดอันเกิดจากการพิมพ์ บทความที่ได้รับการเผยแพร่โดยวารสารเภสัชกรรมไทยถือเป็นสิทธิ์ของวารสารฯ
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