Factors associated with regular non-diet soft drink intake among adults in Pelotas, Southern Brazil.

OBJECTIVE To assess factors associated with regular intake of non-diet soft drinks among adults. METHODS Population-based cross-sectional study including 972 adults (aged 20 to 69) in the city of Pelotas, Southern Brazil, conducted in 2006. The frequency of non-diet soft drink intake in the 12 months prior to the study was evaluated by the question: "In general since last , how many times did you have a non-diet soft drink?". The answers were dichotomized for the analysis. Intake of non-diet soft drinks five times or more per week was considered regular intake. The association between the outcome and sociodemographic, behavioral and nutritional variables was tested using the chi-square test for heterogeneity and linear trend and a multivariate analysis was performed through Poisson regression with a robust variance. RESULTS Approximately one in every five adults (20.4%) reported regular intake of non-diet soft drinks. Males (PR 1.50; 95%CI 1.20;2.00), smokers (RP 1.60; 95%CI 1.20;2.10) and those reporting weekly intake of snacks (PR 2.10; 95%CI 1.60;2.70) had higher prevalence of non-diet soft drink intake in the adjusted analysis. The analysis stratified by gender showed that in women regular intake of fruits and vegetables was protective against soft drinks consumption (PR 0.50; 95%CI 0.30;0.90). CONCLUSIONS Regular intake of non-diet soft drinks among adults was high, particularly among men, young adults and smokers.