Food habits and sport activity during adolescence: differences between athletic and non-athletic teenagers in Switzerland

Objective: To describe food habits and dietary intakes of athletic and non- athletic adolescents in Switzerland. Setting: College, high schools and pro fessional centers in the Swiss canton of Vaud. Method: A total of 3540 subjects aged 9-19y answered a self-reported anonym ous questionnaire to assess lifestyles, physical plus sports activity and f ood habits. Within this sample, a subgroup of 246 subjects aged 11-15 also participated in an in-depth ancillary study including a 3 day dietary recor d completed by an interview with a dietician. Results: More boys than girls reported engaging in regular sports activitie s (P < 0.001). Adolescent food habits are quite traditional: up to 15 y, mo st of the respondents have a breakfast and eat at least mio hot meals a day , the percentages decreasing thereafter. Snacking is widespread among adole scents (60-80% in the morning, 80-90% in the afternoon). Food habits among athletic adolescents are healthier and also are perceived as such in a high er proportion. Among athletic adolescents, consumption frequency is higher for dairy products and ready to eat (RTE) cereals, for fruit, fruit juices and salad (P < 0.05 at least). Thus the athletic adolescent's food brings m ore micronutrients than the diet of their non-athletic counterparts. Within the subgroup (ancillary study), mean energy intake corresponds to requirem ents for age/gender group. Conclusions: Athletic adolescents display healthier food habits than non-at hletic adolescents: this result supports the idea that healthy behavior ten ds to cluster and suggests that prevention programs among this age group sh ould target simultaneously both sports activity and food habits. Sponsorship: Service of Sports and Physical Education of the Swiss canton o f Vaud, Federal Sports School of Macolin (Switzerland).