Dietary intake during screen time among premenopausal women

Dietary intake and snacking during television watching could exacerbate the deleterious effects that are already associated with television watching. The present study examined the relationship between television and computer screen time and dietary intake in a sample of healthy women. 82 female participants (mean age 32 ± 4 y, waist/height ratio 0.5 ± 0.1, BMI 27.7 ± 5.7 kg/m²) were categorized into screen time groups. Methods included 7-day weighed food records, activity records, height, weight, waist circumference, and body composition assessment. Absolute intake and the proportion of intake consumed during screen time were computed for the following variables: total fat, saturated fat, sugar, fiber, calcium, vitamin C, and snacking. One-way ANOVA compared total dietary intake among the three screen time categories. Non-parametric tests were used to compare the proportion of dietary intake consumed during screen time by screen time category, and to determine whether differences existed in energy, fat, sugar, and nutrient density among foods consumed during television viewing compared to computer use. Participants in the highest screen time category had the highest BMI and waist/height ratio. There were no significant differences in absolute dietary intake by screen time category. There were statistically significant differences at the p<0.01 level in the proportion of dietary intake consumed during screen time variables for the three groups. Participants in the lowest screen time category consumed a significantly lower proportion of total energy, total fat, saturated fat, fiber, and calcium (p<0.001) during screen time when compared to participants in the moderate and high screen time categories. Participants in the lowest screen time category consumed less sugar (Low/Mod: p = 0.006) and vitamin C (Low/Mod: p = 0.006) during screen time when compared to those in the moderate screen time category; and fewer snacks (Low/High: p=0.000) when compared to those in the highest screen time category. Participants consumed a significantly greater percent of energy from fat (p=0.036) and saturated fat (p=0.041) during television viewing when compared to computer use. The findings of this study support the creation of guidelines that limit screen time usage among adults.