Well-Being and the Lifestyle Habits of the Spanish Population: The Association between Subjective Well-Being and Eating Habits

Abstract

The so-called Mediterranean diet is not simply a collection of foodstuffs but an expression of the culture of the countries of the south of Europe, declared Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO. Despite the link between food and culture, little has been studied about how diet contributes to the well-being of the population. This article aims to analyze the association between subjective well-being and the eating habits of the Spanish population in order to gain a better understanding of the subjective well-being that food culture produces. For this study, we used a representative sample of the Spanish adult population from a survey by the Sociological Research Center (CIS 2017). Three indicators of subjective well-being were used: perceived health, life satisfaction, and feeling of happiness. The independent variables relating to eating habits considered in the analysis were, among others, how often meat, fish, vegetables, fruit, and sweets were consumed; how the food was prepared; how often meals were eaten out at restaurants or cafés and how often they were eaten with family or friends. Other independent variables related to lifestyle habits were also included in the analysis, in particular, physical exercise and body mass index. We used ordinal logistic regressions and multiple linear regression models. Our findings coincide in large measure with those obtained in earlier studies where perceived health and income play a key role in evaluating subjective well-being. In turn, several variables related to lifestyle habits, such as consuming sweets and fruits, social interaction around meals, exercising, and body mass index, were also associated with subjective well-being.