Authors

1 Professor, Department of Public Health, School of Health, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.

2 Assistant Professor, Department of Public Health, School of Health, Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences, Shahrekord, Iran.

3 Assistant Professor, Department of Health Education and Health Promotion, School of Public Health, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran.

4 Assistant Professor, Department of Health Education and Promotion, Faculty of Health, Qom University of Medical Sciences, Qom, Iran.

5 Department of Health Education, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran.

6 Department of Public Health, Behbahan Faculty of Medical Sciences, Behbahan, Iran.

Abstract

Unfortunately just a few number of children and adolescents use sufficient amounts of fruit and vegetables. This study aimed to investigate the association between fruit and vegetables consumption and perceived self-efficacy, outcome expectations and outcome evaluation in adolescent girls in Shahrekord city.This is a descriptive analytic study conducted on 308 high school girls (first grade) who were selected by cluster sampling method in Shahrekord, Iran in 2013-2014. A researcher made questionnaire was used to collect the needed data like demographic variables, substructures of perceived self-efficacy, outcome expectations and outcome evaluation. In order to investigate the fruit and vegetables consumption status, the standard questionnaire of FFQ was used. The collected data was analyzed by SPSS 18 software, using descriptive and analytic tests such as one way variance analysis, Pearson and Spearman correlation. The mean scores of fruit and vegetables consumption and vegetables consumption were reported as 1.45±0.68 and 1.47±0.95 respectively as well. There was a direct significant association between adolescents’ perceived self-efficacy and outcome expectations. A direct significant association was also observed between fruit consumption and both outcome evaluation and perceived self-efficacy
Regarding the status of fruit and vegetables consumption and the mean scores of outcome evaluation, outcome expectations and perceived self-efficacy in adolescents which was low, and also the importance of promoting healthy diet in the critical period of adolescence, it seems necessary to use efficient patterns and theories of health education and promotion in which the roles of individuals, family and environment has been considered.

Keywords