Determining What Individual and Household Factors Influence Food Choice

Abstract

People have different lifestyles and eat different things. It is interesting to talk about food choice because good nutrition is an important part of leading a healthy lifestyle. Moreover, the relationship between good nutrition and overall health is too important to be ignored. With that as motivation, we performed a study whose main purpose is to determine what individual and household factors influence people’s food choice. To do so, we analyzed data from the National Household Food Acquisition and Purchase Survey which was conducted by the United States Department of Agriculture. Those data were based on different surveys done on multiple people living in the United States about their habits such as how many children they have, their financial situation, where they work and what they eat. We then analyzed the data for people living in the southern part of the United States, including Oklahoma, using many statistical tests such as chi-square test and then developed a multiple regression model in order to understand how their lifestyle and the food availability are related to their food choice. Our model produced results identifying details of which factors were the most significant in affecting food choice. These results are important because they might influence people’s food choice, lifestyle, and even food companies to open in more locations.