The Perception of Snack Healthiness and Preferences in Children is Related to Health Parameter Measures

Abstract

The relationship between snack preferences/healthiness and health parameters is still poorly defined. Most children choose snacks low in nutritional value, which may contribute to the rise in childhood obesity. This study has examined children’s snack preferences and healthiness by age and gender and correlated them with their health parameters. Scottish Nursery and Primary children aged 3–12 years (n = 472) performed snack card sorting exercises in which they were presented with 18 different colored snack images, which counted as one portion, followed by two main snack questions related to snack healthiness and preferences. Health parameters were measured. Older children were better able to determine which snacks were healthier based on their energy content. Children with a higher body mass index percentile were not found to have a specific preference for unhealthy snacks based on the four nutritional components. However, snacks high in fat and sugar (and low in energy and salt) were preferred by children with higher body fat. A positive relationship was observed between the energy content of the children’s top five snacks selected for healthiness and their weight, waist circumference, hip circumference, waist-to-hip ratio, and waist-to-height ratio. There was only a negative relationship with height and body fat. The relationship between children’s perceptions of snack preferences and healthiness and their health parameters is still unclear and needs further investigation.