AUTHOR=Saleh Sheima T. , Osaili Tareq M. , Al-Jawaldeh Ayoub , Hasan Haydar A. , Hashim Mona , Mohamad Maysm N. , Qiyas Salma Abu , Al Sabbah Haleama , Al Daour Rameez , Al Rajaby Radhiya , Masuadi Emad , Stojanovska Lily , Papandreou Dimitrios , Zampelas Antonis , Al Dhaheri Ayesha S. , Kassem Hanin , Cheikh Ismail Leila 

TITLE=Adolescents’ use of online food delivery applications and perceptions of healthy food options and food safety: a cross-sectional study in the United Arab Emirates

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Nutrition

VOLUME=11

YEAR=2024

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/nutrition/articles/10.3389/fnut.2024.1385554

DOI=10.3389/fnut.2024.1385554

ISSN=2296-861X

ABSTRACT=<sec id="sec1"><title>Introduction</title><p>This cross-sectional study aimed to assess Online food delivery applications (OFDA) usage trends among adolescent users in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), focusing on their perceptions of healthy food options and food safety (<italic>n</italic> = 532).</p></sec><sec id="sec2"><title>Methods</title><p>Sociodemographic information, frequency of OFDA use, factors affecting food choices, and perceptions of healthy food and food safety were investigated. A total perception score was calculated for each participant;</p></sec><sec id="sec3"><title>Results</title><p>Most participants used OFDAs weekly (65.4%), favoring fast food (85.7%). Factors like appearance and price drove food choices (65.0%), while taste and cost hindered healthy food orders (29.7 and 28.2%). Younger and frequent users had lower scores for perceiving healthy food, while seeking healthy options was associated with higher scores (<italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.05). Females and those seeking healthy food showed higher food safety scores (<italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.05).</p></sec><sec id="sec4"><title>Discussion</title><p>The study suggests tailored interventions to promote healthier choices and improve food safety perceptions among adolescents using OFDAs in the UAE.</p></sec>