Evidence shows that diet can have a significant impact on future health. Therefore the food choices made throughout life will likely have some impact on overall health and longevity. A number of lines of evidence suggest that the poor are unhealthier than the rich, and many studies support the view that socioeconomic status is a significant contributory factor in overall health. One of the reasons that socioeconomic factor are associated with health, may relate to the different food choices made between socioeconomic groups. Environmental factors undoubtedly influence these choices, as those who are poor tend to live in different locations, have different types of jobs and different outlooks on life that those who are wealthier. That socioeconomic status can influence food choices was evidenced by a recent study that investigated the food choices of older adults in free living conditions in Western Europe1. Researchers investigated food choices in the subjects and then recorded their socioeconomic background.
The results of the study showed that taste, price and healthiness significantly influenced the subject’s meal decisions. Of these the healthiness of the meal was the most influential factor. In addition, the time it would take to get to the store to buy the ingredients but not the time it took to prepare the meal was also significant. More highly educated subjects rated healthiness and cheapness to be more important compared to less educated subjects. Whereas more wealthy subjects rated healthiness and tastefulness to be more important compared to the less wealthy subjects. These results therefore suggest that wealth and education levels can influence food choices in older adults living in Western countries. This may in some way explain the health disparity seen between those of different socioeconomic status living in Western countries. However, it is unclear why wealth and education influence people to make different decisions or how this can be addresses to improve the health of those making poor food choices.
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