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  nutrition information & education

Some nutrition information programs aim to produce nutritionally literate consumers by providing information such as nutrition information labels on food packages and the food guide pyramid. In contrast, nutrition education programs are targeted at specific groups and emphasize dietary behavior change. ERS provides advice and technical assistance to other USDA agencies to develop evaluation components in their nutrition education programs. ERS research examines the economics of food labeling and consumer use of information.


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Patterns of Caloric Intake and Body Mass Index Among U.S. Adults—Marked differences in caloric intakes exist across income and education subgroups over the whole range of intake levels, from light to moderate to high. When these differences are compared with differences in body fatness (as measured by Body Mass Index) across the same income and education groups, the patterns tends to match for men but not for women. For example, a greater share of low-income men consumes excessive calories and has BMIs in the obese range than high-income men. Among women, however, low incomes tend to be associated with high BMIs but lower caloric intakes. Determining the causes of disagreements between patterns of caloric intake and body fatness across sociodemographic groups may lead to a better understanding of the causes of disparities in overweight and obesity.

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updated: January 28, 2003

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