Assessment of the quality of the diet and healthy eating habits using the SEDCADiet questionnaire.
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.12873/454marrodanKeywords:
mediterranean diet, adults, Food habitsAbstract
Introduction. The Mediterranean Diet (MD) is a dietary pattern with recognised health benefits, but existing questionnaires to measure adherence have limitations of applicability in the contemporary adult population. In response to this need, the Spanish Society of Dietetics and Food Sciences (SEDCA) developed and validated a new instrument: the SEDCADiet questionnaire, designed to assess both diet quality and health-protective dietary attitudes and behaviours.
Methodology. The study was planned as a cross-sectional analysis based on an online survey distributed between 2021 and 2024, completed by 1,227 adults. The questionnaire consists of 16 dichotomous items distributed in four subscales: (1) frequent consumption of fresh produce; (2) diverse diet and avoidance of processed foods; (3) avoidance of refined sugars and carbohydrates; and (4) self-care and prevention behaviours. The items were analysed for difficulty and discriminatory ability, as well as for internal consistency using the KR2 coefficient.
Results. All items were of adequate difficulty (p between 0.5 and 0.7). The overall reliability of the questionnaire was acceptable (KR20 = 0.716) and the discriminatory capacity was satisfactory, with the reading of nutrition labels and the avoidance of sugary products at breakfast standing out.
Discussion. The SEDCADiet questionnaire incorporates information not previously included in previous DM assessment questionnaires. A classification into three categories of adherence is proposed, based on a maximum score of 16: needs improvement (≥ 5), habits that can be improved (6-10) and good habits (≥11).
Conclusions. The SEDCADiet questionnaire is a simple, reliable tool, applicable in clinical, educational and population contexts, which allows a comprehensive assessment of both adherence to DM and healthy eating behaviours.
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