Beyond Calories: The New Economics of Nutrition

The economics of human nutrition has changed greatly in recent years as researchers have moved beyond supply and demand of specific foods and total calories to functional aspects of diet quality, such as nutrient composition, sustainability, and a variety of credence attributes. New kinds of data and methods allow researchers to focus on beneficial or harmful attributes of dietary patterns and the cost-effectiveness of interventions aimed at improving health through diet. This review describes some of the recent literature in nutrition economics and its implications for food policy around the world. The new economics of nutrition is benefiting from a strong foundation in the behavioral and social sciences, building on evidence from the natural and health sciences to address fundamental aspects of human well-being and sustainable development.

Understanding Motivations for Gardening Using a Qualitative General Inductive Approach

Although some benefits of gardening have been documented, motivations regarding participation in gardening are often considered based on anecdote. The purpose of this study was to use qualitative analysis to explore reasons gardeners from different genders and generations participate in gardening. The questions developed for this study were intentionally exploratory and left open-ended to gather a large variety of responses. Surveys were collected from 177 individuals between the ages of 7 and 94 years old. Responses were categorized into themes identified through the literature review, the pilot study, and through exploration of the data. Responses could fit into as many categories as were mentioned by the respondents and were categorized by three independent coders. Interrater reliability was assessed using a two-way mixed, absolute agreement, average measures intraclass correlation (ICC) and determined the degree to which coders provided consistency in their ratings across participants. Themes developed through this survey included “social interaction,” “aesthetics,” “food availability/health/nutrition,” “economics,” “therapeutic,” “environmental benefits,” “nostalgia,” and “personal productivity.” Themes of personal productivity and nostalgia are those which have not occurred in previous research. Statistically significant differences were found in comparisons among males and females with more males gardening for food/health/nutrition and for reasons regarding nostalgia. More females reported gardening for personal productivity when compared with males. No significant difference was identified in comparisons of gardeners from various age groups indicating that gardeners across generations have similar intentions and receive similar benefits.