Difference in adult food group intake by sex and age groups comparing Brazil and United States nationwide surveys.

BACKGROUND: International comparisons of dietary intake are an important source of information to better understand food habits and their relationship to nutrition related diseases. The objective of this study is to compare food intake of Brazilian adults with American adults identifying possible dietary factors associated with the increase in obesity in Brazil. METHODS: This research used cross-national analyses between the United States and Brazil, including 5,420 adults in the 2007-2008 What We Eat In America, National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey and 26,390 adults in the 2008-2009 Brazilian Household Budget Survey, Individual Food Intake. Dietary data were collected through 24 h recalls in the U.S. and through food records in Brazil. Foods and beverages were combined into 25 food categories. Food intake means and percentage of energy contribution by food categories to the population's total energy intake were compared between the countries. RESULTS: Higher frequencies of intake were reported in the United States compared to Brazil for the majority of food categories except for meat, rice and rice dishes; beans and legumes; spreads; and coffee and tea. In either country, young adults (20-39 yrs) had greater reports of meat, poultry and fish mixed dishes; pizza and pasta; and soft drinks compared to older adults (60 + yrs). Meat, poultry and fish mixed dishes (13%), breads (11%), sweets and confections (8%), pizza and pasta (7%), and dairy products (6%) were the top five food category sources of energy intake among American adults. The top five food categories in Brazil were rice and rice dishes (13%), meat (11%), beans and legumes (10%), breads (10%), and coffee and tea (6%). Thus, traditional plant-based foods such as rice and beans were important contributors in the Brazilian diet. CONCLUSION: Although young adults had higher reports of high-calorie and nutrient-poor foods than older adults in both countries, Brazilian young adults did not consume a diet similar to Americans, indicating that it is still possible to reverse the current trends of incorporating Western dietary habits in Brazil.

Avaliação dos marcadores de consumo alimentar do VIGITEL (2007-2009) / Evaluation of food intake markers in the Brazilian surveillance system for chronic diseases - VIGITEL (2007-2009)

OBJETIVO: Avaliar as questões marcadoras de consumo alimentar do Sistema Vigilância de Fatores de Risco e Proteção para Doenças Crônicas por Inquérito Telefônico e sua evolução temporal. MÉTODOS: Foram avaliados 135.249 indivíduos de 27 cidades brasileiras, entrevistados nos anos de 2007 - 2009. Os marcadores de consumo alimentar foram descritos a partir da frequência de consumo de frutas, hortaliças, feijão, leite integral e desnatado, refrigerante normal e diet/light, e consumo de gordura aparente das carnes e a pele do frango. Avaliou-se a evolução temporal desses marcadores e, adicionalmente, testou-se a elaboração de um escore de alimentação saudável e a identificação de padrões alimentares por meio da análise de cluster. RESULTADOS: Observou-se aumento estatisticamente significativo nas frequências de consumo de feijão, leite integral e refrigerante normal e diminuição no consumo de leite desnatado. Mesmo com aumento de 11 para 13 por cento de indivíduos que referiram consumir feijão diariamente, esses percentuais são baixos; assim como o consumo recomendado de 3 porções de frutas e 3 porções de hortaliças por dia, que foi referido por menos de 15 por cento da população em todos os anos, com queda de 5 para 3 por cento para as hortaliças. O refrigerante não diet foi o item com maior aumento no consumo, passando de 60 para 67 por cento. Os itens avaliados apresentaram fraca correlação e não configuram um constructo único de alimentação saudável. CONCLUSÃO: A qualidade da dieta dos brasileiros tem piorado e é necessária melhor qualificação dos marcadores alimentares considerados de risco para doenças crônicas não-transmissíveis.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate markers of food intake of the telephone-based risk factor surveillance system for chronic diseases (VIGITEL) and the trend of these markers. METHODS: A total of 135,249 subjects from 27 Brazilian cities interviewed in the 2007 - 2009 surveys were evaluated. Eating habits were evaluated based on the frequency of intake of fruit, vegetables, beans, whole and skim milk, regular and diet/light soft drinks and visible fat in meat and poultry. These items were used to create a diet quality score and to identify dietary patterns in a cluster analysis. RESULTS: Time trends indicated statistically significant increase in the frequency of intake of beans, whole milk and regular soft drinks and decline in vegetables and skim milk. There was an increase in the frequency of individuals who reported consuming beans daily, from 11 to 13 percent. Beans are considered as a protective factor and the prevalence of usual intake is still low. Over the past three years, less than 15 percent of the studied population reported eating the Brazilian recommended number of 3 servings of fruits and 3 servings of vegetables per day. As to the vegetable intake, a decrease from 5 to 3 percent was reported. The consumption of regular soft drinks had the highest increase, ranging from 60 to 67 percent. The assessed items showed a weak correlation and did not represent a sole healthy eating construct. CONCLUSION: The diet quality of the Brazilians has gotten worst and eating markers that are associated with high risk of chronic diseases should be better qualified.