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Migration Background Influences Consumption Patterns Based on Dietary Recommendations of Food Bank Users in Germany

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Abstract

People with low income tend to eat less balanced than people with higher income. This seems to be particularly the case for people with migration background. This cross-sectional study examined the relation of consumption patterns of 597 food bank users with different migration background in Germany. Questionnaires were distributed assessing sociodemographic information and consumption patterns. Analyses were conducted using binary logistic regressions. Models were controlled for age, gender, type of household and education. The group of German food bank users consumed fewer fruits and vegetables and less fish compared to all other groups with migration background (former USSR, Balkan region, Middle East). A significant predictor for fruit and vegetable consumption was migration status. Participants from the former USSR consumed less often SSBs compared to the other groups. Dietary recommendations for low income populations should take into consideration other aspects besides income such as migration status.

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Acknowledgements

The authors want to thank the Schwäbische Tafel Stuttgart e.V. for their cooperation and support.

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Correspondence to Nanette Stroebele-Benschop.

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The author NSB, JD, FG, AM, LE and CH declares that they have no conflict of interest.

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All procedures performed in this study involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments. Given the anonymous nature of the study procedures, only verbal consent was obtained.

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Stroebele-Benschop, N., Depa, J., Gyngell, F. et al. Migration Background Influences Consumption Patterns Based on Dietary Recommendations of Food Bank Users in Germany. J Immigrant Minority Health 20, 1387–1395 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-018-0734-5

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