The Association between Frequency of Fast Food Restaurant Visits and Diet Quality

Abstract

Frequency of fast food restaurant visits has often been used as a marker of poor diet quality though this association has not been fully documented. This study explores the association between fast food frequency and socio-demographic characteristics, as well as several measures of overall diet quality, including the HEI-2005 score and its individual components. The relation between types of fast food restaurant most frequented and socio-demographic characteristics and diet quality is also characterized. Frequency was found to be positively associated with respondents who were younger, male, and of higher income, and negatively associated with diet quality. However, frequency alone may not be sufficient as a proxy for diet quality as these associations were not clear for all diet quality measures. "Coffee" type restaurants were preferentially visited by respondents who were younger, female, and of higher SES; "Burgers/Chicken" was preferred by older, male, and lower SES respondents. In general, diet quality was best for those who most frequent "Coffee" and lowest for respondents who prefer "Burgers/Chicken", suggesting that preferred fast food type may be indicative of dietary habits overall.