Use of special diets in Brazil: II National Food Survey, 2017-2018

Abstract

This study aims to estimate the prevalence of special diets and analyze the sociodemographic profile, nutritional status, and eating habits of the Brazilian population that uses special diets. This cross-sectional study was conducted with data from the second 2017/2018 National Food Survey (n=45,689 individuals aged at least 10 years). We questioned the use of hypertension, diabetes, cholesterol, heart disease, and weight-loss diets. Dieting prevalence was estimated by sociodemographic characteristics and nutritional status, and logistic regression models were em-ployed to assess factors associated with dieting. All analyses considered sample design and expansion factors. The prevalence of special diets was 14.3%. Weight-loss (5.2%) and hypertension (4.6%) diets were the most prevalent. Women, older adults, individuals with higher incomes, and obese individuals were more likely to follow any type of special diet than their peers.