Determinants of diet quality among mothers of young children in an urban slum area in Jakarta: Mother’s age, vegetables availability, and eating out frequency

Introduction: Poor diet quality is a major issue, and health concerns may be related to diet. Mothers with young children usually have their meals at home; thus, home food environment plays a role in determining dietary behaviours. This study examined the association between health concerns and diet quality among mothers; additionally, the effect of home food environment on this relationship was assessed. Methods: This cross-sectional study comprising 229 mothers (aged 19–49 years) with young children was conducted in an urban slum area in North Jakarta. Data were collected via interviews using a structured questionnaire. The General Health Interest Scale and Consumer Behaviour Questionnaire were used to assess health concern and home food environment, respectively. The 24-hour dietary recall method was used to calculate the Diet Quality Index-International (DQI-I) score. Spearman’s correlation, multiple linear regression, and path analysis were used to analyse the data. Results: Majority of the mothers had poor diet quality (mean DQI-I score, 41.44/100). No significant correlation between health concern and diet quality was observed. After adjusting for age, the relationship between health concern and diet quality was not mediated by vegetables availability or eating out frequency (indirect effect=0.012; p=0.096). Multiple linear regression analysis revealed age as a significant predictor of diet quality (B=0.196; p=0.024). Conclusion: Diet quality among mothers of young children differed with age and was related to both health concerns and home food environment. Thus, the development of strategies to promote healthy eating based on different age groups is warranted.