Snacking is prevalent in Mexico (original) (raw)

2014, The Journal of nutrition

Snacking has increased globally, but little is known about how Mexicans consume foods outside meals. The aim of this study was to examine the prevalence and patterns of snacking behavior among Mexicans. We used data from children and adults (aged ≥ 2 y; n = 9937) from the Mexican National Nutrition Survey 1999 and the Mexican National Health and Nutrition Survey (NHNS) 2012 to examine the prevalence of snacking as well as amount (kcal) and contribution of snacks to total energy intake per day. Snacking was defined as eating outside of the 3 main meals. We calculated per capita (among the total population) and per consumer ("snackers") estimates of the number of snacks per day, kilocalories per snack, kilocalories per day from snacks, and the percentage of energy from snacks. Top foods consumed during snack occasions were also examined for the NHNS 2012. All results were weighted to account for survey design and to be nationally representative. In 2012, an estimated 73% of ...