| China's official "economic reform" policy has had far reaching impacts that have transformed the fundamental character of society including the traditional dietary pattern. In the seven year period between 1983 and 1989, average energy consumption has decreased with a concomitant and significant decrease in carbohydrate intake and an increase in fat intake. Consumption of cereal grains and starches, the mainstay of the Chinese diet, has decreased and the intakes of animal foods and added fats and cooking oils have increased. Regional trends suggest that preferred foods such as pork, poultry, eggs, fish, rice and green vegetables are all consumed in greater quantity in the coastal provinces, which is manifest in a significantly different nutrient profile across three distinct regions in China. Ethnic differentials reveal distinct patterns of food intakes, with the nomadic populations of Xinjiang, Neimongol and Gansu provinces consuming a diet richer in meat other than pork, and more milk and dairy products when contrasted with the Han majority.; This study examines the determinants of dietary intakes in rural China in the context of the "market transition" which is manifest in increased household purchasing power, availability of and access to an increasingly diverse set of foods and increased exposure to "western" norms and values. Alternative explanations emphasizing the effects of human capital and industrialization (or technological development) also were examined. The results of the multivariate analyses confirm the strong effects of the hypothesized relationships derived from the conceptual framework at both the ecologic level for intakes of selected foods and macronutrients measured as daily amounts per reference man and at the individual level for frequency of meat intake. The effects of household purchasing power, wealth status and the normative influences exerted by television use were particularly strong. Increased individual choice via access to and availability of products as measured by the number of markets in an area was a significant factor explaining increased fat intake and decreased intakes of carbohydrate and plant foods, at the county level. The contextual effects of markets on frequency of meat intake however, was much weaker when examined at the individual level. |
