To describe availability and frequency of use of local snack-food outlets and determine whether reported use of these outlets was associated with dietary intakes.

Data were cross-sectional. Availability and frequency of use of three types of local snack-food outlets were reported. Daily dietary intakes were based on the average of up to four 24 h dietary recalls. Multivariable linear regression models estimated average daily intakes of energy, sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) and snack foods/sweets associated with use of outlets.

Multi-site, observational cohort study in the USA, 2004–2006.

Girls aged 6–8 years (n 1010).

Weekly frequency of use of local snack-food outlets increased with number of available types of outlets. Girls with access to only one type of outlet reported consuming food/beverage items less frequently than girls with access to two or three types of outlets (P <0·001). Girls’ daily energy, SSB and snack foods/sweets intakes increased with greater use of outlets. Girls who reported using outlets>1 to 3 times/week consumed 0·27 (95 % CI 0·13, 0·40) servings of SSB more daily than girls who reported no use. Girls who reported using outlets>3 times/week consumed 449·61 (95 % CI 134·93, 764·29) kJ, 0·43 (95 % CI 0·29, 0·58) servings of SSB and 0·38 (95 % CI 0·12, 0·65) servings of snack foods/sweets more daily than those who reported no use.

Girls’ frequency of use of local snack-food outlets increases with the number of available types of outlets and is associated with greater daily intakes of energy and servings of SSB and snack foods/sweets.

To perform an evaluation of selected phytochemicals intake and breast cancer (BC) risk in Mexican women.

We conducted hospital-based case–control study.

Mexico City between 1994 and 1996.

A total of 141 histologically confirmed BC cases were age-matched (±3 years) to an equal number of hospital controls. The reproductive history of each woman was obtained by direct interview. The dietary consumption of flavonols, flavones, flavan-3-ols, cinnamic acid, lariciresinol, pinoresinol, secoisolariciresinol, matairesinol and coumestrol was obtained by means of a validated FFQ.

Among postmenopausal women, high dietary intake of flavonols and flavones was associated with a significant reduction of BC risk (high v. low tertile: OR = 0·21, 95 % CI 0·07, 0·60, P for trend = 0·004 and OR = 0·29, 95 % CI 0·10, 0·82, P for trend = 0·025, respectively); consumption of lignans (lariciresinol and pinoresinol) showed a similar effect, but only among premenopausal women (high v. low tertile: OR = 0·32, 95 % CI 0·10, 0·99, P for trend = 0·051 and OR = 0·19, 95 % CI 0·06, 0·62, P for trend = 0·006, respectively).

Our results support a protective role of specific dietary phytochemicals in BC risk by menopausal status, independent of other reproductive factors.