Social determinants of household food expenditure in Australia: The role of education, income, geography and time

Objective To examine socio-economic status (SES) and time-related factors associated with less healthy food purchases in Australia. Design Data were from the 2009/10 Household Expenditure Survey (HES) conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Regression analysis was used to examine the associations between the proportion of the household food budget spent on various food types (processed and unprocessed foods, foods purchased from takeaways and restaurants) and SES and time constraint variables. Setting Australia, 2009-2010. Subjects Nationally representative sample of Australian households. Results Household income seems to be the most important correlate with food expenditure patterns once other SES indicators are controlled for. Time constraints appear to explain some, but not all, of the adjusted SES gradients in food expenditure. Comparing home food consumption categories (processed and unprocessed foods) with foods purchased away from home (takeaway and restaurant foods) shows that wealthier, more highly educated and least disadvantaged households spend relatively less of their total food budget on processed and unprocessed foods prepared at home and more on foods purchased away from home at restaurants. Conclusions Simple SES gradients in dietary behaviour are influenced by correlations between different SES indicators and between SES and time constraints. Examining these factors separately obscures some of the possible causal effects of disadvantage on healthy eating. When formulating policy responses to unhealthy diets, policy makers should consider alternative sources of disadvantage, including time pressure.