Socioeconomic Status and Changes in Iranian Household Food Basket Using National Household Budget and Expenditure Survey Data, 1991-2017

Socioeconomic factors are major determinants of health and food consumption. The aim of the present study was assessing the changes in energy and different food groups consumption related to the socioeconomic status of Iranian households.

In this repeated cross-sectional study, 717432 households data from the Households Income and Expenditure Survey (HIES) conducted yearly by the Statistical Centre of Iran (SCI) from 1991 to 2017 was used. The food consumption outcome was modeled as a function of household head age, household head age-squared, socioeconomic variables, household size, place of residence, and household`s head sex. Principle Component Analysis (PCA) was used to extract a socioeconomic status variable based on the educational, occupational, and income status of households.  A cross-classified random effects modeling (CCREM) specifications of Hierarchical Age-Period-Cohort (HAPC) models was used in the present study.

In the present study, by moving to the higher quartiles of SES had higher calorie intake increased. There was a positive relationship between “Vegetables”, “Fruits”, “Dairy”, “Meat, Poultry, Fish, Eggs, Legumes, and Nuts” and “Fats, Oils, Sugars, and Sweets” with socioeconomic statues category. In the case of “Bread, Cereal, Rice, and Pasta”, there was a reverse relationship, and lower SES quartile consumed a higher amount of this food group.

Lower income, education, and occupational status in lower SES quartile groups lead to lower calorie consumption and higher consumption of  “Bread, Cereal, Rice, and Pasta" food group, which had lower energy cost compared to the other food groups.