Food preferences and seed selection in two species of Australian desert rodent

1994 ◽  
Vol 21 (6) ◽  
pp. 647 ◽  
Author(s):  
BR Murray ◽  
CR Dickman
Keyword(s):  
Water Content ◽  
Food Choice ◽  
Arid Regions ◽  
Food Preferences ◽  
Seed Selection ◽  
Food Items ◽  
European Settlement ◽  
Seed Preference ◽  
Desert Rodents ◽  
Desert Rodent

Food preferences of two species of Australian desert rodents, the spinifex hopping-mouse (Notomys alexis) and the sandy inland mouse (Pseudomys hermannsburgensis), were investigated in cafeteria trials. Both species showed strong preference for invertebrate material (a beetle, Tenebrio molitor) over the seeds and stems of spinifex (Triodia basedowii), and fungus (Tulostoma sp.). This contrasts with previous reports that these rodents are granivores, and suggests instead that they may be omnivorous. Further investigation of the basis for food choice was carried out in a series of seed preference trials, and provided some indication that the water content of food items may underlie diet selection. We suggest that the ability of native rodents to eat a broad range of food types, particularly invertebrates, has promoted survival in arid regions that have been subjected to disturbance since European settlement.

scholarly journals SousChef System for Personalized Meal Recommendations: A Validation Study

2022 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 702
Author(s):  
David Ribeiro ◽  
Telmo Barbosa ◽  
Jorge Ribeiro ◽  
Filipe Sousa ◽  
Elsa F. Vieira ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cardiovascular Diseases ◽  
Validation Study ◽  
Food Choice ◽  
Eating Habits ◽  
Food Preferences ◽  
Economic Factors ◽  
Food Items ◽  
Multiple Factors ◽  
Nutritional Needs ◽  
Different Characteristics

Nutrition is an essential part of our life. A healthy diet can help to prevent several chronic diseases like diabetes, obesity, cancer, and cardiovascular diseases, being influenced by social, cultural, and economic factors. Meal recommender systems are a trend to assist people in finding new recipes to cook and adopt healthier eating habits. However, food choice is complex and driven by multiple factors which need to be reflected in the personalization process of these systems to ensure their adoption. We present SousChef, a meal recommender system that can help to plan multiple meals considering an individual’s food preferences, restrictions, and nutritional needs. Our approach uses recipes rather than individual food items, limiting recommendations to tasteful and culturally acceptable food combinations. Several experiments were performed to evaluate the system from different perspectives: nutritional, food preferences, and restrictions, and the recommendations’ variability. Our results highlight the importance of using extensive and diverse content in recommendations to meet food preferences, restrictions, and nutritional needs of people with different characteristics.

scholarly journals Food Preferences and Food Choice Determinants in a Polish Adolescents’ COVID-19 Experience (PLACE-19) Study

Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 2491
Author(s):  
Dominika Głąbska ◽  
Dominika Skolmowska ◽  
Dominika Guzek
Keyword(s):  
Secondary School ◽  
Food Choice ◽  
Food Preference ◽  
Food Preferences ◽  
Food Choices ◽  
Population Based ◽  
School Students ◽  
High Preference ◽  
Quota Sampling ◽  
Food Choice Motives

Food preferences are within the most important determinants of food choices; however, little is known about their complex associations, and no studies were conducted in the period of the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of the study was to analyze the association between food preferences and food choice determinants in adolescents aged 15–20 years within the Polish Adolescents’ COVID-19 Experience (PLACE-19) Study. The PLACE-19 Study included a random quota sampling conducted in the whole of Poland and covered a population-based sample of 2448 secondary school students. The food preferences were assessed using a validated Food Preference Questionnaire (FPQ), and the food choices were assessed using a validated Food Choice Questionnaire (FCQ). The statistical analysis comprised k-means clustering and linear regression adjusted for sex and age. Four homogenous clusters of respondents were defined based on the food choice motives—“healthy eaters” (health as the most important determinant of food choices), “hedonists” (convenience, sensory appeal, and price as the most important determinants), “indifferent consumers” (low significance for all determinants), and “demanding consumers” (high significance for all determinants). The preferences for all food categories differed when comparing between clusters presenting various food choice determinants (p < 0.001). The “healthy eaters” were characterized by the highest preference for vegetables; the “hedonists” preferred meat/fish, dairy, and snacks; the “demanding consumers” had a high preference for all food categories, while “indifferent consumers” had a low preference for all food categories. All preference scores were positively associated with mood, convenience, sensory appeal, natural content, and price (p < 0.05). The results confirmed the association between food preferences and food choice determinants in adolescents, as well as allowed adolescents to be clustered into segments to define various needs and motives among the identified segments. For public health purposes, it may be crucial to educate “hedonists,” with a high preference for meat/fish, dairy and snacks, accompanied by convenience, sensory appeal, and price as the most important determinants of their food choices.

scholarly journals Healthy decisions in the cued-attribute food choice paradigm have high test-retest reliability

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Zahra Barakchian ◽  
Anjali Raja Beharelle ◽  
Todd A. Hare
Keyword(s):  
Food Choice ◽  
Food Choices ◽  
Retest Reliability ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Food Items ◽  
Intervention Efficacy ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Test Retest Reliability ◽  
Decision Mechanisms ◽  
High Test

AbstractFood choice paradigms are commonly used to study decision mechanisms, individual differences, and intervention efficacy. Here, we measured behavior from twenty-three healthy young adults who completed five repetitions of a cued-attribute food choice paradigm over two weeks. This task includes cues prompting participants to explicitly consider the healthiness of the food items before making a selection, or to choose naturally based on whatever freely comes to mind. We found that the average patterns of food choices following both cue types and ratings about the palatability (i.e. taste) and healthiness of the food items were similar across all five repetitions. At the individual level, the test-retest reliability for choices in both conditions and healthiness ratings was excellent. However, test-retest reliability for taste ratings was only fair, suggesting that estimates about palatability may vary more from day to day for the same individual.

scholarly journals Oral Sensitivity to Flowability and Food Neophobia Drive Food Preferences and Choice

Foods ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 1024
Author(s):  
Sharon Puleo ◽  
Paolo Masi ◽  
Silvana Cavella ◽  
Rossella Di Monaco
Keyword(s):  
Food Choice ◽  
Food Preferences ◽  
Food Neophobia ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Choice Preference ◽  
Food Liking ◽  
Texture Sensitivity ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Oral Sensitivity

The study aimed to investigate the role of sensitivity to flowability on food liking and choice, the relationship between sensitivity to flowability and food neophobia, and its role in food liking. Five chocolate creams were prepared with different levels of flowability, and rheological measurements were performed to characterise them. One hundred seventy-six subjects filled in the Food Neophobia Scale and a food choice questionnaire (FCq). The FCq was developed to evaluate preferences within a pair of food items similar in flavour but different in texture. Secondly, the subjects evaluated their liking for creams (labelled affective magnitude (LAM) scale) and the flowability intensity (generalised labelled magnitude (gLM) scale). The subjects were clustered into three groups of sensitivity and two groups of choice preference. The effect of individual flowability sensitivity on food choice was investigated. Finally, the subjects were clustered into two groups according to their food neophobia level. The sensitivity to flowability significantly affected the liking of chocolate creams and the solid food choice. The liking of chocolate creams was also affected by the individual level of neophobia (p = 0.01), which, in turn, was not correlated to flowability sensitivity. These results confirm that texture sensitivity and food neophobia affect what a person likes and drives what a person chooses to eat.

Food choice models and their relation with food preferences and eating frequency in the Polish population: POFPRES study

Food Policy ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 122-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lidia Wądołowska ◽  
Ewa Babicz-Zielińska ◽  
Jolanta Czarnocińska
Keyword(s):  
Food Choice ◽  
Food Preferences ◽  
Choice Models ◽  
Polish Population ◽  
Eating Frequency

scholarly journals Relating surface backscatter response from TRMM Precipitation Radar to soil moisture: results over a semi-arid region

2009 ◽  
Vol 6 (5) ◽  
pp. 6425-6454
Author(s):  
H. Stephen ◽  
S. Ahmad ◽  
T. C. Piechota ◽  
C. Tang
Keyword(s):  
Soil Moisture ◽  
Water Content ◽  
Soil Water ◽  
Soil Water Content ◽  
Arid Regions ◽  
Vegetation Index ◽  
Temporal Trends ◽  
Model Parameters ◽  
Precipitation Radar ◽  
Semi Arid

Abstract. The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) carries aboard the Precipitation Radar (TRMMPR) that measures the backscatter (σ°) of the surface. σ° is sensitive to surface soil moisture and vegetation conditions. Due to sparse vegetation in arid and semi-arid regions, TRMMPR σ° primarily depends on the soil water content. In this study we relate TRMMPR σ° measurements to soil water content (ms) in Lower Colorado River Basin (LCRB). σ° dependence on ms is studied for different vegetation greenness values determined through Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI). A new model of σ° that couples incidence angle, ms, and NDVI is used to derive parameters and retrieve soil water content. The calibration and validation of this model are performed using simulated and measured ms data. Simulated ms is estimated using Variable Infiltration Capacity (VIC) model whereas measured ms is acquired from ground measuring stations in Walnut Gulch Experimental Watershed (WGEW). σ° model is calibrated using VIC and WGEW ms data during 1998 and the calibrated model is used to derive ms during later years. The temporal trends of derived ms are consistent with VIC and WGEW ms data with correlation coefficient (R) of 0.89 and 0.74, respectively. Derived ms is also consistent with the measured precipitation data with R=0.76. The gridded VIC data is used to calibrate the model at each grid point in LCRB and spatial maps of the model parameters are prepared. The model parameters are spatially coherent with the general regional topography in LCRB. TRMMPR σ° derived soil moisture maps during May (dry) and August (wet) 1999 are spatially similar to VIC estimates with correlation 0.67 and 0.76, respectively. This research provides new insights into Ku-band σ° dependence on soil water content in the arid regions.

scholarly journals Children-and-Partner's Food Preferences and Role of Woman as Caregiver: Key Elements of Food Choice Linked to Social Environment in a Consumer Population of Hermosillo City

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. 174-174
Author(s):  
Ana Contreras Navarro ◽  
Paulina Blanco Cervantes ◽  
Alma Contreras Paniagua ◽  
Gloria Portillo Abril ◽  
Guadalupe Álvarez Gordillo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Focus Groups ◽  
Food Environment ◽  
Food Choice ◽  
Food Preferences ◽  
Five Dimensions ◽  
Food And Nutrition Security ◽  
Nutrition Security ◽  
Food And Nutrition ◽  
Consumer Population ◽  
Community Food Environment

Abstract Objectives The main objective was to identify determinants of food choice linked to the community food environment in a marginalized consumer population in the city of Hermosillo, Mexico. The specific objectives were to develop group interviews with women and to frame the data analysis within the field of research in food and nutrition security. Methods In this qualitative study design, we employed the focus group technique to ask participants “How do you decide which foods to obtain for your family's diet?”. To investigate further we asked, “What are those reasons that explain the selection of those foods?” Women who regularly attended a community center localized in a neighborhood with a very high grade of urban marginalization participated in the focus groups. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and three distinct methods were used to perform analysis: (1) content analysis (2) data organization, using software QSR NVivo, in relation to five dimensions of food and nutrition security: affordability, accessibility, acceptability, food quality, and care; and (3) triangulation between five co-authors (A.C.N., P.B.C., A.D.C.P., G.E.P.A., and M.I.O.V.). Results From May to November of 2019, four focus groups were conducted by a single facilitator in two community centers of Hermosillo (n = 27 participants). Reasons that explained the participant's food choices within the community food environment and that showed the highest number of mentions in the interviews were identified in relation to acceptability factors: children's food preferences, partner's food preferences, all household-members’ food preferences. The following extract reflects the main study findings: “When I can't do a certain thing it is because it's very expensive, but if there is a way, even if it's a little… for example, my middle-aged son really likes peppers and he eats them alone. So, I know that when I go to the store, I have to bring at least one, for him to eat other things.” Conclusions The study of food choice in this group of women denotes that their role as caregiver of food and nutrition in relation to their children-and-partner's food preferences are key elements of food decision-making processes, preceding the socioeconomic factors and constraints, they certainly face. Funding Sources Institutional small grant C.I.A.D., A.C.

Assessing knowledge and attitudes towards food sustainability among people who visit Overends Kitchen, Airfield Estate, Dublin

2020 ◽  
Vol 79 (OCE2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Clare Corish ◽  
Kirstie McAdoo ◽  
Myriam Alhilou
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Food Choice ◽  
Saturated Fat ◽  
Food Preferences ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Nutritional Knowledge ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Knowledge And Attitudes ◽  
Positive Attitudes ◽  
Fresh Vegetables

Abstract‘Food sustainability’ is now acknowledged as integral to the achievement of food security, a healthy community and protection of the environment. Understanding consumers’ knowledge of and attitudes towards food sustainability is poorly understood in Ireland. This study aimed to explore the knowledge and attitudes towards food sustainability among visitors to an Irish restaurant, known to prepare foods in a sustainable way. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 426 visitors at the Overends Kitchen, Airfield Estate, Dublin, Ireland using a short questionnaire informed by previously collected data on Irish consumers’ attitudes towards food purchasing and a Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (UK) questionnaire. Information on demographics, food choice motives, food preferences, basic nutritional knowledge, awareness and attitudes toward food sustainability was obtained. Data were analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Science (IBM, v23, Chicago, Ill, USA). Quality (98%) and health (92%) were the most important motives for food choice. Females (P = 0.001) and older (P = 0.029) participants had greater interest in health as a motivating factor for food choice compared to males and those who were younger. Free-range (eggs) and fresh vegetables and fish were most frequently purchased. Poor knowledge of recommendations about saturated fat, and daily fruit and vegetables intakes was demonstrated though this was better in female (P = 0.005) and younger (P = 0.007) participants. Participants demonstrated positive attitudes towards food sustainability and over half (57%) were aware of GLAS principles (Go with the seasons, Local for produce, Avoid food waste, Sustainably produced) although only 37% reported that these principles influence their dietary choices. Misinformation about the environmental sustainability and nutritional value of farmed vs. organic or wild fish and fresh vs. frozen vegetables was apparent. This research provides some understanding of Irish consumers' knowledge and attitudes towards food sustainability. The need to enhance understanding of how diets can be made more sustainable is clear.

Who really values healthy food?

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Pilar Ester Arroyo ◽  
Javier Liñan ◽  
Jorge Vera Martínez
Keyword(s):  
Psychological Health ◽  
Food Choice ◽  
Food Preferences ◽  
Food Product ◽  
Food Products ◽  
Healthy Food ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Individual Traits ◽  
Health Related

PurposeWhen selecting manufactured foods, customers consider several product features. Given the contemporary trends of food consumption, the purpose of this paper is to determine the influence that some demographic and psychographic key variables have on the chances of a consumer belonging to a market segment characterised by health-related food preferences.Design/methodology/approachThe food choice scale is revised to develop a multidimensional measure of the factors underlying consumer food choices. Data of 288 sampled consumers were used to validate the scale and to group consumers into four segments based on the value assigned to several food-product meta-attributes. Depending on these food choice values, the study identified four dissimilar clusters: utilitarian, protecting, toning and highly demanding.FindingsConsumers use multiple attributes when choosing food products. However, emerging segments tend to prefer health-related attributes over utilitarian or conventional attributes, such as price, flavour or accessibility. The consumers of these segments tend to be older, more health conscious and more prone to psychological health risks.Originality/valueDemographic and psychographic traits tend to drive trade-offs between health- and non-health-related attributes when considering food products. Several multivariate methodologies were innovatively coupled to characterize consumers based on their healthy food preferences and individual traits.

scholarly journals Disparities in food habits across Europe

2002 ◽  
Vol 61 (4) ◽  
pp. 553-558 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonia Trichopoulou ◽  
Androniki Naska ◽  
Tina Costacou ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Food Availability ◽  
Food Habits ◽  
Economic Status ◽  
Household Head ◽  
Food Preferences ◽  
Food Purchasing ◽  
Food Items ◽  
The North ◽  
Fresh Vegetables ◽  
European Populations

Socially-and culturally-patterned differences in food habits exist both between and within European populations. Daily individual food availability data, collected through the national household budget surveys (HBS) and harmonized in the context of the Data Food Networking (DAFNE) project, were used to assess disparities in food habits of seven European populations and to evaluate dietary changes within a 10-year interval. The availability of selected food items was further estimated according to the educational level of the household head and, based only on the Greek HBS data, according to quintiles of the household's food purchasing capacity. Results for overall food availability support the north-south differentiation in food habits. Generally, the availability of most food items, including foods such as vegetable fats, animal lipids and sugar products, has decreased over the 10 years. Households in which the head was in the higher education categories reported lower availability for most food items, with the exception of low-fat milk, fresh fruit, animal lipids and soft drinks; the latter showing a sharp increase even within southern European households. The household's food purchasing capacity can be used as an indicator of socio-economic status, with higher values being associated with lower status. Greek households of lower social class follow a healthier diet in terms of greater availability of vegetable oils, fresh vegetables, legumes, fish and seafood. Data from the DAFNE databank may serve as a tool for identifying and quantifying variation in food habits in Europe, as well as for providing information on the socio-economic determinants of food preferences.

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