Nutr J
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Secondary data containing the locations of food outlets is increasingly used in nutrition and obesity research and policy. However, evidence evaluating these data is limited. This study validates two sources of secondary food environment data: Ordnance Survey Points of Interest data (POI) and food hygiene data from the Food Standards Agency (FSA), against street audits in England and appraises the utility of these data. ⋯ POI and FSA data have good agreement with street audits; although both datasets had geographic biases which may need to be accounted for in analyses. Use of POI proprietary classifications is an accurate method for classifying outlets, providing time savings compared to manual classification of outlets.
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Optimum nutrition and good feeding practices amongst infants and young children are the key determinants of growth for a healthy life. Dietary diversity is considered to be a reliable and easy-to-measure proxy variable to assess young children's feeding practices for dietary adequacy and nutritional intake. This research aims to examine the current practices of dietary diversity amongst infants and young children aged 6-23 months in Pakistan and the various associated factors at child, maternal, household and community levels. ⋯ The dietary diversity of infants and young children aged 6-23 months has a modest, nevertheless statistically significant, relationship with sociodemographic characteristics in Pakistan. There is a need for practical efforts to change the behaviour of communities to encourage more diverse foods to promote the healthy growth of children.