20120724 - BNI of kinds of yogurts - 2011

[Data] [<Normal page] [PEREZGONZALEZ Jose D (2011). BNI of kinds of yogurts. Journal of Knowledge Advancement & Integration (ISSN 1177-4576), 2012, pages 219-221.]

BNI of kinds of yogurts

Some yogurts target particular populations, such as children, for reasons other than nutrition or health. Thus, it is of interest to test whether such yogurts inform about overall nutritional balance (BNI) and, thus, may help choose more balanced products. This article summarizes research done in this regards (for an in-depth description see Perezgonzalez, 2011c3).

Illustration 1 collates relevant statistical information about two groups of yogurts: those which are targeted to children and those which are not. These results seem to support four main inferences. Firstly, that yogurts targeted to children have an average BNI higher (median = 100.91) than other yogurts (median = 90.50). Secondly, that such difference is also found between groups (U = 3142, p < 0.01). Thirdly, that avoiding yogurts targeted to children helps choose more balanced yogurts (rho = 0.122, p < 0.01). Fourthly, that, nonetheless, even when statistically significant, both medians and correlation are rather small, and they may not be that important in practical terms.

Illustration 1: Yogurts targeted to children
BNI No Yes
0 0 0
1-10 0 0
11-20 0 0
21-30 0 0
31-40 2 0
41-50 0 0
51-60 3 3
61-70 31 3
71-80 23 0
81-90 85 0
91-100 97 4
101-110 44 12
111-120 19 5
121-130 9 0
131-140 2 0
Median 90.50 100.91
U (p) 3142 (.000)
rho (p) 0.122 (.000)
(Source: Perezgonzalez, 2011b2)

Methods

Research approach

Exploratory study.

Sample

A stratified sample of 342 yogurts (ie, soy and cow's milk yogurts, natural and flavored yogurts, and fat-free, low-fat, standard and creamy yogurts), collected in a convenient manner (see Perezgonzalez, 2011b2).

Materials

The main (or dependent) variable was the balanced nutrition classification as assessed using the Balanced Nutrition Index™ (BNI™) technology (see Perezgonzalez, 2011a1).

The grouping (or independent) variable was whether products were targeted to children or not.

Analysis

  • The distribution of the BNI variable was significantly non-normal, the 'yes' group was too small in size and the variable did not relate linearly with the dependent variable (BNI). Therefore, a non-parametric approach was used for data analysis.
  • Main analyses: tests of significance (Fisher-Perez's approach) based on sig ≤ 0.05 (ie, results falling within the 5% or more extreme probabilities area), 2-tailed.
  • Main tests: Mann-Whitney U test for equality of ranked distributions of independent groups, Spearman's rho correlations, and multiple regression on ranked data.
  • All analyses were carried out with SPSS-v18 (PASW Statistics 18).

Generalization potential

Most yogurts were produced locally or imported and exported from or to Australia, respectively. Thus, the results of this study may be generalizable to the following populations (in order of decreasing generalization power):

  • Australia.
  • Internationally, if one assumes yogurts to be of approximately similar nutritional composition anywhere.
References
1. PEREZGONZALEZ Jose D (2011a). Balanced Nutrition Index™ (BNI™). Journal of Knowledge Advancement & Integration (ISSN 1177-4576), 2011, pages 20-21. Also retrievable from Wiki of Science.
2. PEREZGONZALEZ Jose D (2011b). Yogurts galore. The Balanced Nutrition Index (ISSN 1177-8849), 2012, issue 1.
3. PEREZGONZALEZ Jose D (2011c). Nutritional balance of kinds of yogurt. Journal of Knowledge Advancement & Integration (ISSN 1177-4576), 2012, pages 172-183. Also retrievable from Wiki of Science.

Want to know more?

BNI™ journal (2012, issue 1) - Yogurts galore
This issue of the Balanced Nutrition Index™ journal collates all BNI™ nutrition information about the original sample in a single book. You can also access information about individual yogurts on the BNI™ database and aggregated information on Wiki of Science (nutritional balance of food).
Wiki of Science - Nutrition topics
This Wiki of Science page provides access to a variety of nutrition topics, including research related to the one summarised above and a related article providing an in-depth description of above results.

Author

Jose D PEREZGONZALEZ (2012). Massey University, Turitea Campus, Private Bag 11-222, Palmerston North 4442, New Zealand. (JDPerezgonzalezJDPerezgonzalez).


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