 | The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
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| The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
Mark C. Lino, PhD, Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 3101 Park Center Drive, Room 1034, Alexandria, VA 22302-1594, 703-605-0251, mark.lino@cnpp.usda.gov
To assess the dietary status of Americans, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion developed the Healthy Eating Index (HEI). This poster will present the most recent HEI for NonHispanic African Americans relative to other racial/ethnic groups. The HEI was computed for people 2 years old and over using data from the 1999-2000 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The HEI consists of 10 components, each representing different aspects of a healthful diet. Five components measure the degree to which a person’s diet meets the Food Guide Pyramid serving recommendations for the major food groups. Four components measure compliance with recommendations for total fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, and sodium; and the final component evaluates diet variety. The overall HEI score ranges from 0 to 100; HEI component scores range from 0 to 10. An HEI score over 80 indicates a good diet, a score between 51 and 80 a diet that needs improvement, and a score less than 51 a poor diet. Six percent of African Americans had a good diet, 71 percent had a diet needing improvement, and 23 percent had a poor diet. By comparison, 11 percent of NonHispanic Whites, 11 percent of Mexican Americans, 10 percent of other races, and 8 percent of other Hispanics had a good diet. African Americans had significantly lower HEI component scores for grains, vegetables, milk, total fat, and variety than did other racial/ethnic groups. Only 17 percent of African Americans met the fruit recommendation and 18 met the milk recommendation.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Food and Nutrition, African American
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.