Measurement Methods Used to Assess the School Food Environment: A Systematic Review

Children consume approximately half of their total daily amount of energy at school. Foods consumed are often energy-dense, nutrient-poor. The school food environment represents an effective setting to influence children's food choices when dietary habits are established and continue to track i...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of environmental research and public health 2020-03, Vol.17 (5), p.1623
Main Authors: O'Halloran, Siobhan, Eksteen, Gabriel, Gebremariam, Mekdes, Alston, Laura
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Beverages
Children
Energy consumption
Environments
Food
Fruits
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Health care
Identification methods
Measurement methods
Methods
Nutrition
Obesity
Quality
Quality assessment
Researchers
Review
Reviews
School lunches
Studies
Vegetables
Vending machines
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Summary:Children consume approximately half of their total daily amount of energy at school. Foods consumed are often energy-dense, nutrient-poor. The school food environment represents an effective setting to influence children's food choices when dietary habits are established and continue to track into adulthood. The aim of this review was to: (1) group methods used for assessing the school food environment according to four food environment dimensions: Physical, economic, socio-cultural and policy and (2) assess the quality of the methods according to four criteria: Comprehensiveness, relevance, generalizability and feasibility. Three databases were searched, and studies were used to assess food and beverages provided at school canteens, tuck shops or cafeterias were included. The review identified 38 global studies (including 49 methods of measuring the food environment). The physical environment was the primary focus for 47% of articles, aspects of policy environment was assessed by 37% articles and a small number of studies assessed the economic (8%) and socio cultural (8%) environment. Three methods were rated 'high' quality and seven methods received 'medium' quality ratings. The review revealed there are no standardized methods used to measure the school food environment. Robust methods to monitor the school food environment across a range of diverse country contexts is required to provide an understanding of obesogenic school environments.
ISSN:1660-4601
1661-7827
1660-4601
DOI:10.3390/ijerph17051623