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Perceptions of spreading fats among women in Helsinki whose households use only butter or margarine
Appetite, 1992,18, 185-191
Perceptions of Spreading Fats Among Women in Helsinki Whose Households use Only Butter or Margarine RIWA PRji’TT,hLii De~~ment
of Nutrition, University of Helsinki
GRETEL H. PELT0 Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Connef3icut
PERlll
PELT0
Department of Anthropology, University of Connecticut Storrs
MAARIT
AHOLA
and LEENA R&liiNEN
Department of Nutrition, University of Helsinki
This study sought to investigate whether women’s Perceptions about butter and
soft margarine vary by the use of these fats. From interviews in 1984 with 102 addle-aged women from a follow-up dietary survey in Helsinki 27% of their households were classified as exclusive butter users, 46% used both butter and margarine and 27% used only margarine. The women evaluated margarine less “tasty” but “lighter”, and “healthier” than butter. Women whose households used butter exclusively rated it more “useful” than those who used margarine, whereas women whose households used exclusively margarine rated it higher on taste than did exclusive butter users. Butter is a valued traditional food in Finland, and probably the taste of butter is still a reference standard for all spreads. Nevertheless some of the respondents had evidently come to like the soft vegetable margarine that was not available in their childho~.
INTRODUCTION
Traditionally, the Finnish diet has been rich in saturated fat, due particularly to the consumption of butter and high fat milk. For a number of years health education has been aimed at changing fat consumption among the Finnish people (Keys, 1968; Pietinen et uZ., 1988; State Advisory Board on Nut~tion, 1989). Because bread covered with a spread is consumed several times daily, the choice between butter and soft vegetable margarine is a major public health issue in Finland.
This research was financed by the Academy of Finland, the Read Heart Operation Fund, the Social Insurance Institution of Finland, the Juho Vainio Foundation and the Ytj6 Jahnsson Foundation. Grateful ~~owl~~ent is made to Simone Cremers and Edith Vleeshouwers, Department of Nutrition, Agricultural University of Wageningen, The Netherlands and to Eva Roes, Department of Nutrition, University of Helsinki, Finland, for their proficient assistance in data analysis. Address correspondence to: Dr Ritva Priittiilii, LEGEmployment Pension Fund, Palkkatilanportti 1, 00240 Helsinki, Finland. 0195~6663/92/030185+07 %03.00/O
0 1992 Academic Press Limited
186
R. PRIiTTjiLA ET AL..
Previous studies in Finland concerning the relationships of consumption of fatcontaining foods to perceptions about them have yielded conflicting results. According to Tuorila (1987) in sensory tests liking was the predominant predictor of cons~ption of different types of milk. The subjects indicated a reluctance to change their milk choice although they knew that lowering fat consumption was recommended. On the other hand, Hellemann et al. (1990) found no clear relationship between liking and the choice of dairy vs. vegetable fats as spreads on bread. Other factors, among them health consciousness, were better predictors of choice than taste preference. Studies from other countries are also contradictory: the results differ depending on the specific foods, the methods of measurements, and the groups being studied. Some studies indicate liking to be the predominant predictor of consumption (Shepherd & Stockley, 1985, Tuorila & Pangborn, 1988a), whereas in other studies (Shepherd, 1988) health and nutrition concerns are more closely related to consumption. There are also studies (Tuorila & Pangbom, 1988b; Wardle & Beales, 1986; Pr%tt%i & Keinonen, 1984) that reveal conflicting belief structures related to the consumption of certain high-fat foods. For example, subjects express their liking for chocolate, and yet they recognize that it is “bad for you”. The previous studies have often interpreted perceptions as determinants of food consumption across user groups but consumption can also be a modifier of perceptions. So this study sought to determine whether Finnish women’s perceptions about butter and margarine varied among the users of the two types of spread or among socio-demographic groups.
METHODS
Interviews were conducted with 102 women in Helsinki in 1984. These women were participants in the Multicentre Study on Precursors of Atherosclerosis in Finnish Children (Akerblom et al., 1985). The original sample consisted of 200 families representative of Helsinki residents. Of these families, 154 participated in the first dietary survey in 1980 and 128 in the follow-up in 1983. One hundred and twenty families of those who had participated in 1983 were contacted in 1984. The interview begun with demographic information (Table 1). Socioeconomic status was measured with two variables--occupation and education. The occupations of the household heads were categorized according to criteria used by the Finnish Statistical Center (1980). Households were classified as butter users (margarine not used at all), marga~ne users (butter not used at all), or mixed (both butter and margarine used). Margarines used as spreads on bread in Finland are softer than butter and made of vegetable oils. In the 1983 study the women had reported on their personal use of butter and margarine but there were no differences between the 1983 and 1984 data. The women were asked to rate the two fats on a row of seven dashes labelled at the extremes in Finnish “‘tasty-not tasty”, “heavy-light”, ‘~nut~tious-not nut~tious”, “strong-weak”, “ healthy-unhealthy”, “ high fat-low fat” and “useful-not useful” (the Finnish word “tarpeellinen” translates roughly as “useful” in the sense of something that is “necessary” or “required” as contrasted with “optional” or “not required”). These terms were applied to food during ethnographic interviews carried out among a comparable group of women before the final study.
187
USE AND PERCEPTIONS OF BUTTER AND MARGARINE
The order in which the scales were presented to the respondents was randomized. Student’s t-test for paired observations was used to test for differences in butter and margarine ratings among all respondents, Hotelling’s t-test for differences in ratings between the groups. A difference was considered statistically sig~fi~nt if pcO-05. Beliefs and attitudes were further explored by open-ended questions from which the commentaries on fats described below originate.
RESULTS Perceptions of Butter and Margarine
Of the 102 households in the sample, 27% reported to be exclusive butter users, 46% used both butter and margarine, and 27% used only margarine. Since these pro~~ons did not vary subst~ti~ly with socioeconomic status (Table 1), it is not controlled in the analyses of associations between perceptions and use. The women evaluated butter as very “tasty”, “heavy”, and “fat” whereas margarine received more neutral evaluations (Figure 1) Older women found butter tastier, stronger and more nutritious than did the younger women. Subjects who had lived in a rural area in their childhood rated butter as stronger than did women with an urban origin. Women with a higher educational level found butter to be more unhealthy than women with lower educational levels. In contrast to butter, there were no relationships between socio-demographic characteristics and opinions about margarine, with the exception that women with higher educational levels considered margarine healthier.
TABLEI Socio-demographic characteristics of households using butter, margarine or both
Characteristics
butter
Households using margarine
both
Total
n=27
n=28
n=47
n= 102
%
%
%
%
58 3% (4)
38
45 39 16
Occupation Upper white collar Lower white collar Blue collar Age (wife) 40 yrs or less Over 40
48 52
Place of residence in childhood {wife) Urban Rural
50 50
Level of education (wife) Less than high school High school or more
52 48
;:, 50
50
54 46
58 42
56 .44
56 44
46 54
67 33
56 44
“Figures are in parentheses when the number of cases is less than 10.
188
R. PRATTliLA ET AL. Butter
and margarine
perceptions
l
Tasty
- Not tasty
... .
. ., ,_,’
Heavy Nutritious
-
Strong
-
Healthy
-
High fat
-
l
- Light - Not nutritious 4 Weak
l
l
- Unhealthy
- Low fat
Useful
- Not useful
I FIGURE 1. Perceptions
I
I
I
I
I
among women in Helsinki (N= 102,
of butter and margarine
* =difference between perceptions significant at ~~0.05 level). -,
Butter; ---, margarine.
Perceptions with Different Users
Women from households using butter only gave higher ratings to butter for usefulness than did those whose household used margarine only (Figure 2). On the other hand, the tastiness of butter was unrelated to its use, a finding that would be expected given the relative absence of variation in the higher “tasty” ratings of butter. Exclusive margarine users rated that product more highly than non-users for tastiness (Figure 3). The evaluations of usefulness of margarine did not differ significantly with its use.
Butter
perceptions
Tasty
- Not tasty
Heavy
- Light
Nutritious
-
- Not nutritious
Strong
-
- Weak
Healthy
-
- Unhealthy
High fat
-
- Low fat
Useful
-
- Not useful
,
1
FIGURE 2. Perceptions of butter by the use of butter (IV= 26) and margarine (* =p < 0.05). Fat used in household: 0, Butter; V , margarine.
(N= 22)
USE AND PERCEPTIONSOF BUTTEIRAND MARGARINE Margarine
189
perceptions
Tasty Heavy Nutritious
1
Not nutritious
Strong
-
Weak
Healthy
-
High fat
-
Low fat Not useful
Useful
FIGURE 3. Perceptions on margarine by the use of butter (Ii = 26) and margarine (N = 22) (* =pcO*O5). Fat used in household: 0, Butter; ‘(I, margarine.
Vkws of Butter and ~urg~ri~e The open-ended interviews revealed more reasons for choosing either butter or margarine. Reasons for use of butter included taste, tradition and economy, sometimes in conflict with health perceptions: “Butter tastes better. Fat should be avoided, but we use it because of taste. Both of our parents died of heart attacks, so one should do all one can to avoid health risks.” “Both parents are from Karelia, and there they use a lot of fat. No matter how much one knows about the harmfulness of fat, one doesn’t change habits; it’s in the blood. I’m still young and can still change my habits a bit later”. “They talk a lot about the healthfulness of vegetable foods, [and] that one should reduce fat intake. But earlier they used a lot of Epork fat] and they did all right. In earlier times there was a shortage of butter; not anymore. People have to have pleasures. Butter is good”. Some butter users ascribed positive health effects to butter such as its presumed value as a source of vitamin A. Butter was regarded as safer because it is a “natural” product. Reasons for using margarine were taste, health, price, and spreadability. The major theme was health, and margarine users often expressed negative, almost moralizing opinions about butter and butter users: “You can watch those fat people and see how much butter they put on their bread.” “At the workplace cafeteria one gets an awful, dreadful feeling. Apparently it’s from the animal fat they use.” Some respondents expressed great ambivalence concerning their choices of fats: “To me the whole discussion seems pretty mixed. Opinions contradict one another. Something that’s good at one moment is unhealthy the next. So f have decided to ignore the whole thing and eat what tastes good”.
190
R. PRiTT;iLii ET AL. DISCUSSION
The direction of the association between socio-demographic characteristics, perceptions and use is similar to studies in other parts of the indust~a~z~ world (see e.g. Sims, 1976; Schafer, 1978, Knapp et af., 1988). However the associations were weak. They may be stronger among average Helsinki residents, because these respondents were willing to continue to participate in a health and nutrition study. In line with previous studies (Tuorila & Pangborn, 1988b; Wardle & Beales, 1989; Pratttill & Reinonen, 1984), the results reveal ambivalent and contradictory attitudes, especially towards butter. This coni-lict between liking or preference and health concerns appears to be typical of Western Protestant cultures (Mead, 1943). The ratings and the answers to the open-ended questions were consistent with margarine users liking the taste of butter but placing a higher value on health as a criterion for food selection. For butter users, taste appeared to be more important but they also found some positive health effects for their butter eating. In this study the correlations between husbands’, children’s and housewives fat ratings could not be analysed. To understand the development of household fat choices, interactions between household members in relation to fat preferences and ratings should be analysed. In addition, it would be important to analyse fat preferences among persons who have not shifted from one spread type to another. All respondents believed butter to be tasty. Butter is a valued traditional food in
Finland and so the taste of butter may be a reference standard for a11 spreads. Households in Helsinki did not always eat butter although the respondents liked it. Some households evidently had “learned” to like margarine, maybe since soft margarine became available in 1969 (Heino, 1989). It has sometimes been asked whether “people eat what they like” or “like what they eat” (see e.g. Lewin, 1943). It seems that exclusive butter users eat what they like whereas margarine users like what they eat.
REFERENCES Akerblom, H., Viikari, J., Uhari, M., R%inen, L., Byckling, T., Loubivuori, K., Pesonen, E., Suoninen, P., Pietikliinen, M., Llhde, P-L., Dahl, M., Aromaa, A., Sarna, S. & Pyiirlll, K. (1985) Atherosclerosis precursors in Finnish children and adolescents. I. General description of the cross-sectional study of 1980, and an account of the children’s and families’ state of health. Acta Paediatrica Scandinavica 318, (Sup@.), 49-63. Finnish Statistical Center (1980) Cl~s~~~ation of occupation. Helsinki. Heino, J., (1989) Jyvii joka iti. ration yhtymiin tarina 19~9-19~9. Helsinki: Otava. Hellemann, U., Tuorila, H., Lampi, A-M. & Matuszewska, I. (1980) Hedonic responses and attitudes related to fats used as spreads on bread. Food Quality and Preference, 2, 29-38. Keys, A. (1968) Official collective recommendations on diet in the Scandinavian countries. Nutrition Review, 26, 259-263. Knapp, J., Hazuda, H., Haffner, S., Young, E. & Stern, M. (1988) A saturated fat/cholesterol avoidance scale: sex and ethnic differences in a biethnic population. Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 88, 172- 177. Lewin, K. Forces behind food habits and methods of change. In The Committee of Food Habits. The problem of changing food habits. Washington, D.C.: Bulletin of the National Research Council No 108. Mead, M. (1943) The problem of changing food habits. In The Committee of Food Habits. The problem of changing food habits. Washington, DC.: Bulletin of the National Research Council No 108.
USE AND PERCEP’MONS OF BUTTER AND MARGARINE
191
Pie&en, P., Nissinen, A., Vartiainen, E., Tuomilehto, J., Uusitalo, U., Ketola, A., Moisio, S. & Puska, P. (1988) Dietary changes in the North Karelia Project (1972-1982). Preoentiue Medicine, 17, 183-193. Pr&liH, R. & Keinonen, M. (1984) The use and attributions of some sweet foods. Appetite, 5, 199-207. Schafer, R. B. (1978) Factors affecting food behaviour and the quality of husbands’ and wives’ diets. Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 72, 138-43. Shepherd, R. (1988) Belief structure in relation to low-fat milk consumption. Journal of Human Nutrition & Dietetics, 1, 421-428. Shepherd, R. & Stockley, L. (1985) Fat consumption and attitudes towards food with a high fat content. human nutrition, Applied Nutrition, 39A, 43 l-442. Sims, L..(L976) Demographic and attitudinal correlates of nutrition knowledge. Journal of Nutrition Education, 8, 122-125. State Advisory Board on Nutrition (1989) Ravitsemussuositusten toteuttaminen kaytann6s.d. (Practical application of dietary guidelines.) Committee Report, 39. Helsinki: Valtion Painatuskeskus. Tuorila, H. (1987) Selection of milks with varying fat contents and related overall liking, attitudes, norms and intentions. Appetite, 8, l-14. Tuorila, H. & Pangborn, R. M. (1988a) Prediction of reported consumption of selected fat containing foods. Appetite, II, 91-95. Tuorila, H. & Pangborn, R. M. .(1988b) Behavioural models in the prediction of consumption of selected sweet, salty and fatty foods. In Thomson, D. M. H. (Ed) Food Accepta~iZ~ty, 267-279. London: Elsevier Applied Science. Wardle, J. & Beales, S. (1986) Restraint, body image and food attitudes in children from 12 to 18 years. Appetite, 7, 209-217.
Received 31 October 19~, revision 21 October 1991
Perceptions of Spreading Fats Among Women in Helsinki Whose Households use Only Butter or Margarine RIWA PRji’TT,hLii De~~ment
of Nutrition, University of Helsinki
GRETEL H. PELT0 Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Connef3icut
PERlll
PELT0
Department of Anthropology, University of Connecticut Storrs
MAARIT
AHOLA
and LEENA R&liiNEN
Department of Nutrition, University of Helsinki
This study sought to investigate whether women’s Perceptions about butter and
soft margarine vary by the use of these fats. From interviews in 1984 with 102 addle-aged women from a follow-up dietary survey in Helsinki 27% of their households were classified as exclusive butter users, 46% used both butter and margarine and 27% used only margarine. The women evaluated margarine less “tasty” but “lighter”, and “healthier” than butter. Women whose households used butter exclusively rated it more “useful” than those who used margarine, whereas women whose households used exclusively margarine rated it higher on taste than did exclusive butter users. Butter is a valued traditional food in Finland, and probably the taste of butter is still a reference standard for all spreads. Nevertheless some of the respondents had evidently come to like the soft vegetable margarine that was not available in their childho~.
INTRODUCTION
Traditionally, the Finnish diet has been rich in saturated fat, due particularly to the consumption of butter and high fat milk. For a number of years health education has been aimed at changing fat consumption among the Finnish people (Keys, 1968; Pietinen et uZ., 1988; State Advisory Board on Nut~tion, 1989). Because bread covered with a spread is consumed several times daily, the choice between butter and soft vegetable margarine is a major public health issue in Finland.
This research was financed by the Academy of Finland, the Read Heart Operation Fund, the Social Insurance Institution of Finland, the Juho Vainio Foundation and the Ytj6 Jahnsson Foundation. Grateful ~~owl~~ent is made to Simone Cremers and Edith Vleeshouwers, Department of Nutrition, Agricultural University of Wageningen, The Netherlands and to Eva Roes, Department of Nutrition, University of Helsinki, Finland, for their proficient assistance in data analysis. Address correspondence to: Dr Ritva Priittiilii, LEGEmployment Pension Fund, Palkkatilanportti 1, 00240 Helsinki, Finland. 0195~6663/92/030185+07 %03.00/O
0 1992 Academic Press Limited
186
R. PRIiTTjiLA ET AL..
Previous studies in Finland concerning the relationships of consumption of fatcontaining foods to perceptions about them have yielded conflicting results. According to Tuorila (1987) in sensory tests liking was the predominant predictor of cons~ption of different types of milk. The subjects indicated a reluctance to change their milk choice although they knew that lowering fat consumption was recommended. On the other hand, Hellemann et al. (1990) found no clear relationship between liking and the choice of dairy vs. vegetable fats as spreads on bread. Other factors, among them health consciousness, were better predictors of choice than taste preference. Studies from other countries are also contradictory: the results differ depending on the specific foods, the methods of measurements, and the groups being studied. Some studies indicate liking to be the predominant predictor of consumption (Shepherd & Stockley, 1985, Tuorila & Pangborn, 1988a), whereas in other studies (Shepherd, 1988) health and nutrition concerns are more closely related to consumption. There are also studies (Tuorila & Pangbom, 1988b; Wardle & Beales, 1986; Pr%tt%i & Keinonen, 1984) that reveal conflicting belief structures related to the consumption of certain high-fat foods. For example, subjects express their liking for chocolate, and yet they recognize that it is “bad for you”. The previous studies have often interpreted perceptions as determinants of food consumption across user groups but consumption can also be a modifier of perceptions. So this study sought to determine whether Finnish women’s perceptions about butter and margarine varied among the users of the two types of spread or among socio-demographic groups.
METHODS
Interviews were conducted with 102 women in Helsinki in 1984. These women were participants in the Multicentre Study on Precursors of Atherosclerosis in Finnish Children (Akerblom et al., 1985). The original sample consisted of 200 families representative of Helsinki residents. Of these families, 154 participated in the first dietary survey in 1980 and 128 in the follow-up in 1983. One hundred and twenty families of those who had participated in 1983 were contacted in 1984. The interview begun with demographic information (Table 1). Socioeconomic status was measured with two variables--occupation and education. The occupations of the household heads were categorized according to criteria used by the Finnish Statistical Center (1980). Households were classified as butter users (margarine not used at all), marga~ne users (butter not used at all), or mixed (both butter and margarine used). Margarines used as spreads on bread in Finland are softer than butter and made of vegetable oils. In the 1983 study the women had reported on their personal use of butter and margarine but there were no differences between the 1983 and 1984 data. The women were asked to rate the two fats on a row of seven dashes labelled at the extremes in Finnish “‘tasty-not tasty”, “heavy-light”, ‘~nut~tious-not nut~tious”, “strong-weak”, “ healthy-unhealthy”, “ high fat-low fat” and “useful-not useful” (the Finnish word “tarpeellinen” translates roughly as “useful” in the sense of something that is “necessary” or “required” as contrasted with “optional” or “not required”). These terms were applied to food during ethnographic interviews carried out among a comparable group of women before the final study.
187
USE AND PERCEPTIONS OF BUTTER AND MARGARINE
The order in which the scales were presented to the respondents was randomized. Student’s t-test for paired observations was used to test for differences in butter and margarine ratings among all respondents, Hotelling’s t-test for differences in ratings between the groups. A difference was considered statistically sig~fi~nt if pcO-05. Beliefs and attitudes were further explored by open-ended questions from which the commentaries on fats described below originate.
RESULTS Perceptions of Butter and Margarine
Of the 102 households in the sample, 27% reported to be exclusive butter users, 46% used both butter and margarine, and 27% used only margarine. Since these pro~~ons did not vary subst~ti~ly with socioeconomic status (Table 1), it is not controlled in the analyses of associations between perceptions and use. The women evaluated butter as very “tasty”, “heavy”, and “fat” whereas margarine received more neutral evaluations (Figure 1) Older women found butter tastier, stronger and more nutritious than did the younger women. Subjects who had lived in a rural area in their childhood rated butter as stronger than did women with an urban origin. Women with a higher educational level found butter to be more unhealthy than women with lower educational levels. In contrast to butter, there were no relationships between socio-demographic characteristics and opinions about margarine, with the exception that women with higher educational levels considered margarine healthier.
TABLEI Socio-demographic characteristics of households using butter, margarine or both
Characteristics
butter
Households using margarine
both
Total
n=27
n=28
n=47
n= 102
%
%
%
%
58 3% (4)
38
45 39 16
Occupation Upper white collar Lower white collar Blue collar Age (wife) 40 yrs or less Over 40
48 52
Place of residence in childhood {wife) Urban Rural
50 50
Level of education (wife) Less than high school High school or more
52 48
;:, 50
50
54 46
58 42
56 .44
56 44
46 54
67 33
56 44
“Figures are in parentheses when the number of cases is less than 10.
188
R. PRATTliLA ET AL. Butter
and margarine
perceptions
l
Tasty
- Not tasty
... .
. ., ,_,’
Heavy Nutritious
-
Strong
-
Healthy
-
High fat
-
l
- Light - Not nutritious 4 Weak
l
l
- Unhealthy
- Low fat
Useful
- Not useful
I FIGURE 1. Perceptions
I
I
I
I
I
among women in Helsinki (N= 102,
of butter and margarine
* =difference between perceptions significant at ~~0.05 level). -,
Butter; ---, margarine.
Perceptions with Different Users
Women from households using butter only gave higher ratings to butter for usefulness than did those whose household used margarine only (Figure 2). On the other hand, the tastiness of butter was unrelated to its use, a finding that would be expected given the relative absence of variation in the higher “tasty” ratings of butter. Exclusive margarine users rated that product more highly than non-users for tastiness (Figure 3). The evaluations of usefulness of margarine did not differ significantly with its use.
Butter
perceptions
Tasty
- Not tasty
Heavy
- Light
Nutritious
-
- Not nutritious
Strong
-
- Weak
Healthy
-
- Unhealthy
High fat
-
- Low fat
Useful
-
- Not useful
,
1
FIGURE 2. Perceptions of butter by the use of butter (IV= 26) and margarine (* =p < 0.05). Fat used in household: 0, Butter; V , margarine.
(N= 22)
USE AND PERCEPTIONSOF BUTTEIRAND MARGARINE Margarine
189
perceptions
Tasty Heavy Nutritious
1
Not nutritious
Strong
-
Weak
Healthy
-
High fat
-
Low fat Not useful
Useful
FIGURE 3. Perceptions on margarine by the use of butter (Ii = 26) and margarine (N = 22) (* =pcO*O5). Fat used in household: 0, Butter; ‘(I, margarine.
Vkws of Butter and ~urg~ri~e The open-ended interviews revealed more reasons for choosing either butter or margarine. Reasons for use of butter included taste, tradition and economy, sometimes in conflict with health perceptions: “Butter tastes better. Fat should be avoided, but we use it because of taste. Both of our parents died of heart attacks, so one should do all one can to avoid health risks.” “Both parents are from Karelia, and there they use a lot of fat. No matter how much one knows about the harmfulness of fat, one doesn’t change habits; it’s in the blood. I’m still young and can still change my habits a bit later”. “They talk a lot about the healthfulness of vegetable foods, [and] that one should reduce fat intake. But earlier they used a lot of Epork fat] and they did all right. In earlier times there was a shortage of butter; not anymore. People have to have pleasures. Butter is good”. Some butter users ascribed positive health effects to butter such as its presumed value as a source of vitamin A. Butter was regarded as safer because it is a “natural” product. Reasons for using margarine were taste, health, price, and spreadability. The major theme was health, and margarine users often expressed negative, almost moralizing opinions about butter and butter users: “You can watch those fat people and see how much butter they put on their bread.” “At the workplace cafeteria one gets an awful, dreadful feeling. Apparently it’s from the animal fat they use.” Some respondents expressed great ambivalence concerning their choices of fats: “To me the whole discussion seems pretty mixed. Opinions contradict one another. Something that’s good at one moment is unhealthy the next. So f have decided to ignore the whole thing and eat what tastes good”.
190
R. PRiTT;iLii ET AL. DISCUSSION
The direction of the association between socio-demographic characteristics, perceptions and use is similar to studies in other parts of the indust~a~z~ world (see e.g. Sims, 1976; Schafer, 1978, Knapp et af., 1988). However the associations were weak. They may be stronger among average Helsinki residents, because these respondents were willing to continue to participate in a health and nutrition study. In line with previous studies (Tuorila & Pangborn, 1988b; Wardle & Beales, 1989; Pratttill & Reinonen, 1984), the results reveal ambivalent and contradictory attitudes, especially towards butter. This coni-lict between liking or preference and health concerns appears to be typical of Western Protestant cultures (Mead, 1943). The ratings and the answers to the open-ended questions were consistent with margarine users liking the taste of butter but placing a higher value on health as a criterion for food selection. For butter users, taste appeared to be more important but they also found some positive health effects for their butter eating. In this study the correlations between husbands’, children’s and housewives fat ratings could not be analysed. To understand the development of household fat choices, interactions between household members in relation to fat preferences and ratings should be analysed. In addition, it would be important to analyse fat preferences among persons who have not shifted from one spread type to another. All respondents believed butter to be tasty. Butter is a valued traditional food in
Finland and so the taste of butter may be a reference standard for a11 spreads. Households in Helsinki did not always eat butter although the respondents liked it. Some households evidently had “learned” to like margarine, maybe since soft margarine became available in 1969 (Heino, 1989). It has sometimes been asked whether “people eat what they like” or “like what they eat” (see e.g. Lewin, 1943). It seems that exclusive butter users eat what they like whereas margarine users like what they eat.
REFERENCES Akerblom, H., Viikari, J., Uhari, M., R%inen, L., Byckling, T., Loubivuori, K., Pesonen, E., Suoninen, P., Pietikliinen, M., Llhde, P-L., Dahl, M., Aromaa, A., Sarna, S. & Pyiirlll, K. (1985) Atherosclerosis precursors in Finnish children and adolescents. I. General description of the cross-sectional study of 1980, and an account of the children’s and families’ state of health. Acta Paediatrica Scandinavica 318, (Sup@.), 49-63. Finnish Statistical Center (1980) Cl~s~~~ation of occupation. Helsinki. Heino, J., (1989) Jyvii joka iti. ration yhtymiin tarina 19~9-19~9. Helsinki: Otava. Hellemann, U., Tuorila, H., Lampi, A-M. & Matuszewska, I. (1980) Hedonic responses and attitudes related to fats used as spreads on bread. Food Quality and Preference, 2, 29-38. Keys, A. (1968) Official collective recommendations on diet in the Scandinavian countries. Nutrition Review, 26, 259-263. Knapp, J., Hazuda, H., Haffner, S., Young, E. & Stern, M. (1988) A saturated fat/cholesterol avoidance scale: sex and ethnic differences in a biethnic population. Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 88, 172- 177. Lewin, K. Forces behind food habits and methods of change. In The Committee of Food Habits. The problem of changing food habits. Washington, D.C.: Bulletin of the National Research Council No 108. Mead, M. (1943) The problem of changing food habits. In The Committee of Food Habits. The problem of changing food habits. Washington, DC.: Bulletin of the National Research Council No 108.
USE AND PERCEP’MONS OF BUTTER AND MARGARINE
191
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Received 31 October 19~, revision 21 October 1991