ArticleThe international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity2017
Does social distinction contribute to socioeconomic inequalities in diet: the case of 'superfoods' consumption.
Article in The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 28 papers.
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Who cites it
28 citing papers in PubMed.
- Socio-ecological correlates of children's diet in the first 2 years of life: influence of socio-economic position and migration background in a French birth cohort.Public health nutrition · 2026Observational
- Transcriptome-level dissection provides unique insights into the salt tolerance in spelt (Triticum spelta L.).BMC plant biology · 2026Article
- Uncovering intersectional inequalities in fruit and vegetable consumption in the UK using Understanding Society data.Public health nutrition · 2026Article
- The Educational Gradient in the Adherence to the Healthy Nordic Food Index Among Adult Men and Women in Tromsø: The Tromsø study 2015-2016.Food & nutrition research · 2026Article
- Interrogating Theories and Mechanisms Underlying Educational Inequities in Diet Quality.The Journal of nutrition · 2025Review
- Exploring food choices among educated adults in the United Arab Emirates.Frontiers in nutrition · 2025Article
- Socio-demographic correlates of ultra-processed food consumption in Canada.Public health nutrition · 2024Article
- Adherence and Sociodemographic Determinants of Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet among Slovenian Adults and the Elderly.Nutrients · 2023Article
- Testing conditionality with Bourdieu's capital theory: How economic, social, and embodied cultural capital are associated with diet and physical activity in the Netherlands.SSM - population health · 2023Article
- Social and economic difficulties of patients with food intolerances.Postepy dermatologii i alergologii · 2023Article
- Barriers associated with pulse and plant-based meat alternative consumption across sociodemographic groups: a Capability, Opportunity, Motivation, Behaviour model approach.Frontiers in nutrition · 2023Article
- Mediterranean Diet Adherence in Community-Dwelling Older Adults in Spain: Social Determinants Related to the Family.Nutrients · 2022Article
- How Information on Superfoods Changes Consumers' Attitudes: An Explorative Survey Study.Foods (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- An incongruous intervention: Exploring the role of anti-institutionalism in less-educated individual's limited uptake of nutrition information.Sociology of health & illness · 2022Article
- Can new healthy luxury food products accelerate short food supply chain formation via social media marketing in high-income countries?Agricultural and food economics · 2022Article
- Who Are the Superfoodies? New Healthy Luxury Food Products and Social Media Marketing Potential in Germany.Foods (Basel, Switzerland) · 2021Article
- Genotype-Dependent Variation of Nutritional Quality-Related Traits in Quinoa Seeds.Plants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2021Article
- Socioeconomic position links circulatory microbiota differences with biological age.Scientific reports · 2021Article
- Sociodemographic differences in motives for food selection: results from the LoCard cross-sectional survey.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2021Article
- Functional Components and Anti-Nutritional Factors in Gluten-Free Grains: A Focus on Quinoa Seeds.Foods (Basel, Switzerland) · 2021Review
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4 authors.
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Abstract
backgroundThe key mechanisms underlying socioeconomic inequalities in dietary intake are still poorly understood, hampering the development of interventions. An important, but sparsely mentioned mechanism is that of 'social distinction', whereby those in a higher socioeconomic position adopt dietary patterns by which they can distinguish themselves from lower socioeconomic groups. We investigated the importance of distinction as a mechanism, by testing the socioeconomic gradient in the consumption of so-called 'superfoods' and the contribution of a well-established indicator of distinction, cultural participation.
methodsData from participants (25-75 years) of the 2014 survey of the Dutch population-based GLOBE study were used (N = 2812). Multivariable regression models were used to analyse the association between education, income and cultural participation (e.g. visits to museums, opera, theatre, concerts) and the consumption of superfoods (spelt, quinoa and goji berries, chia seeds or wheatgrass).
resultsThe consumption of superfoods is far more prevalent among higher socioeconomic groups. Adjusting for cultural participation strongly attenuated the educational and income gradient in superfoods consumption, whereas cultural participation remained strongly associated with superfoods consumption. Those in the highest quintile of cultural participation reported the highest consumption of spelt products (OR = 2.97, 95% CI = 2.10;4.18), quinoa (OR = 3.50, 95% CI = 2.12;5.79) and goji berries, chia seeds or wheatgrass (OR = 2.69, 95% CI = 1.73;4.17).
conclusionsThe associations between socioeconomic position and the consumption of 'superfoods' seem to be partially driven by a process of social distinction. These findings suggest that distinction may be an important, but currently neglected mechanism in generating socioeconomic inequalities in dietary intake. It deserves a more prominent role in interventions to reduce these inequalities.
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