Dietary Diversity and Micronutrients Adequacy in Women of Childbearing Age: Results from ELANS Study

Abstract

<jats:p>Dietary diversity, an important component of diet quality, is associated with an increased probability of adequate micronutrient intake. Women of childbearing age (WCA) are particularly vulnerable to micronutrient inadequacy. The Minimum Dietary Diversity for Women (MDD-W) has been used widely as a proxy measurement of micronutrient adequacy. This study aimed to assess the association between MDD-W and nutrients adequacy among WCA of eight Latin American countries. Nutrient intakes from 3704 WCA were analyzed with two 24-hour dietary recalls. Dietary diversity was calculated based on ten food groups with a cut-off point of intake ≥5 groups. The mean dietary diversity score was 4.72 points, and 57.7% of WCA achieved MDD-W. Vitamin D and E showed a mean Nutrient Adequacy Ratio (NAR) of 0.03 and 0.38, respectively. WCA with a diverse diet (MDD-W &gt; 5) reported a significantly higher intake of most micronutrients and healthy food groups with less consumption of red and processed meats and sugar-sweetened beverages. MDD-W was significantly associated with the mean adequacy ratio (MAR) of 18 micronutrients evaluated. Nevertheless, even those women with a diverse diet fell short of meeting the Estimated Average Requirements (EAR) for vitamins D and E. MDD-W is an appropriate tool to evaluate micronutrients adequacy in WCA from Latin America, showing that women who achieved the MDD-W reported higher adequacy ratios for most micronutrients and an overall healthier diet.</jats:p>

Socioeconomic Status Impact on Diet Quality and Body Mass Index in Eight Latin American Countries: ELANS Study Results

“…MARs were compared by age group, country, SES, weight status and dietary quality scores accomplishment. DDS has been previously validated as a proxy of micronutrients adequacy in women from the ELANS study sample [ 34 ].…”

Food group diversity and nutrient adequacy: Dietary diversity as a proxy for micronutrient adequacy for different age and sex groups in Mexico and China

“…In China, high energy intake reporting was rare. As in Mexico, low energy intake reporting increased markedly with BMI, and in the case of China it was also high among children 6-17 years 10 who reported that they were on a weight-loss diet. The pattern of low energy intake reporting by age differed from that of Mexico, with the highest prevalence for young children (2-4 years of age) and older adolescents (15-19 years of age).…”

“…The underlying 10-point score is also associated with micronutrient adequacy. The indicator was developed based on analyses of data from nine sites in six countries (five low-income and one lower-middle-income); subsequently, associations between MDD-W (and/or its underlying score) and nutrient intakes and adequacy have been demonstrated in a number of studies from diverse contexts (7)(8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14).…”

“…3 Though developed for women of reproductive age (WRA), MDD-W or its underlying score have sometimes been used to describe diversity for other age/sex groups (9), reflecting strong demand for metrics for other groups, as well as for WRA. Given its origins and use to date, there is limited information on associations with nutrient adequacy in upper-middleincome countries, although one recent multi-country study in Latin America demonstrated positive associations (10).…”

Intake of Vitamin E and C in Women of Reproductive Age: Results from the Latin American Study of Nutrition and Health (ELANS)

“…As described above, in LatAm and other western countries, a high proportion of dietary vitamin E is provided by fats and oils, together with sweet baked products, none of which are rich in α-tocopherol but contribute to α-tocopherol intake because of their high consumption. In agreement, a recent report showed that Latin American women of childbearing age consumed diets with low diversity of nutrients, characterized by high intake of cereals and low consumption of vitamin E-rich foods such as green leafy vegetables (6.8%) and nuts or seeds (2.8%) [56]. Dietary diversity usually reflects the high quality of the diet and is associated with an increased probability of adequate micronutrient intake [57].…”