Sociological aspects

The purpose of sociological research and advisory tasks within the field of nutrition and physical activity is partly to gain insight into the social conditions that influence Danes’ dietary and physical activity habits and partly to describe which groups are particularly at risk of impaired health due to undesirable behavior. In addition the objective is to study underlying motives for and barriers to healthy eating and being physically active as well as achieving knowledge about habits and attitudes related to healthy behavior and lifestyle.

These sociological perspectives on dietary habits and physical activity produce knowledge which contributes to explaining and understanding Danes’ diet and level of physical activity. This insight is crucial when you want to launch focused prevention initiatives and influence people’s lifestyle habits.

The research methods are quantitative as well as qualitative. The quantitative research draws on data from the Danish National Survey of Diet and Physical Activity, DANSDA. This survey gathers information on social background (education, working status, income, household composition, urbanization and underlying motives and barriers to a healthy living The underlying basis for the qualitative research is in-depth interviews, focus groups and observational studies. These methods give a complex and varied picture of health related issues.

Collaboration

Danish Agriculture & Food Council  
Danish AgriFish Agency
Danish Veterinary and Food Administration 
Institute of Food and Resource Economics, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Copenhagen 
Ministry of Environment and Food of Denmark
National Institute for Consumer Research (SIFO), Norway 
The Danish National Centre for Social Research 
Statistics Denmark