Educational variations in the consumption of foods containing fat in Finland and the Baltic countries.

OBJECTIVE: To examine educational differences among people who consume foods containing fat in Finland and the Baltic countries.

DESIGN: Data were collected from cross-sectional postal Finbalt Health Monitor surveys that were carried out in 1998, 2000 and 2002.

SETTING: Estonia, Finland, Latvia and Lithuania.

SUBJECTS: For each survey, nationally representative random samples of adults aged 20-64 years were drawn from population registers (Estonia, n = 3656; Finland, n = 9354, Latvia, n = 6015; Lithuania, n = 5944).

RESULTS: Differences were revealed between the countries in the consumption of foods that contain fat. Finnish people consumed butter on bread, high-fat milk, meat and meat products, and vegetable oil for cooking less frequently than people in the Baltic countries. Cheese was most popular in Finland. Educational differences in fat-related food habits were examined by applying logistic regression analysis. A positive association was found between level of education and consumption of vegetable oil used in food preparation. Drinking high-fat milk was associated with low education in all countries. People with higher education tended to consume cheese more often. Educational patterns in the consumption of butter on bread and in the consumption of meat and meat products differed between countries.

CONCLUSIONS: The consumption of foods containing fat was related to educational levels in all four countries. The diet of better-educated people was closer to recommendations for the consumption of saturated and unsaturated fats than the diet of people with lower level of education. The educational gradient was more consistent in Finland than in the Baltic countries. These existing educational differences in sources of fat consumed should be taken into account in the development of national cardiovascular disease prevention programmes.