Food Biodiversity and Diet Quality in Dutch Adults ^†

Abstract

Biodiversity is essential for human and environmental health, yet our food system is one of the primary drivers of biodiversity loss. Food biodiversity, defined as the variety of consumed plants, animals and other organisms, can be measured by Dietary Species Richness (DSR). A higher DSR is associated with a lower mortality risk in European populations; however, less is known about DSR and diet quality in Dutch populations. We assessed the associations between fruit DSR and diet quality in a representative sample of 2078 Dutch participants aged from 19 to 79 years. Data were retrieved from the Dutch National Food Consumption Survey (DNFCS) between 2012 and 2016 by two non-consecutive 24 h diet recalls. Fruit DSR was calculated based on the absolute count of unique fruit species consumed over two measurement days, regardless of the total amount (grams) of consumed fruits. The Dutch Healthy Diet index 2015 (DHD15-index) consisting of 14 components was used to measure diet quality. Per component, participants could score between 0 and 10, with a total score between 0 and 140. Linear regression analyses were performed to investigate the association between fruit DSR and DHD15-index. Analyses were stratified by age and sex and corrected for total energy intake. In total, 45 (DSR fruit: median 2 [IQR 1–3]) different fruit species were consumed by 2078 participants in this sample. On average, participants consumed 260 g of fruit (SD265) over two days. Malus domestica (apple) was the most frequently consumed species (23.9%), and 462 participants (22.2%) did not consume any fruits. Overall, moderate scores for diet quality were found (DHD15-index: M59; SD18; min–max11-115) and females seem to have healthier diets than males. For every additional fruit species consumed, the DHD15-index score increased by 4.17 points (95%CI 3.79–4.54). The strongest associations between DSR fruit and DHD15-index were found in Dutch adults between 19 and 30 years (β4.7 [95%CI 3.9–5.5]). Fruit DSR was associated with diet quality. Every additional consumed fruit species led to a higher DHD15-index score. This is in line with previous studies, but further research in this sample is needed to explore if these associations also exist between overall DSR and diet quality. This research is ongoing.