Identifying patterns of unhealthy diet and physical activity in four countries of the Americas: a latent class analysis

OBJECTIVES: To determine clusters of individuals who present similar health behaviors in terms of diet, physical activity, and sedentarism, in four countries of the Americas: Brazil (2013), Chile (2009), Mexico (2012), and the United States of America (2013). This makes it possible to determine which of these behaviors occur simultaneously, as well as the demographic and sociodemographic characteristics associated with each cluster. METHODS: The individual-level data analyzed were drawn from national health interviews and health examination surveys in Brazil, Chile, Mexico, and the United States, for different time periods. Using international physical activity guidelines and national dietary guidelines, the health behaviors of each individual were assessed. A latent class analysis was conducted to classify individuals into clusters based on these behaviors, and was followed by multinomial regressions to determine the characteristics of those in each class. RESULTS: Overall, most individuals belonged to the classes characterized by average or unhealthy diets but sufficient amounts of physical activity. However, large differences exist across countries and population groups. Men with higher socioeconomic characteristics were globally more likely to belong to the least healthy class in each country. CONCLUSIONS: Findings from this analysis support the implementation of more refined policy actions to target specific unhealthy behaviors in different population groups, defined by gender, age group, socioeconomic status, and, to some extent, place of residence. The at-risk populations identified through this paper are those that should be targeted by upcoming interventions.