Exploring Dietary Behavior Changes Due to the COVID-19 Confinement in Colombia: A National and Regional Survey Study

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of coronavirus SARS-Cov2 (COVID-19) confinement measures in Colombia on the dietary behaviors of a large population sample, at national and regional levels. A survey was conducted to assess dietary behaviors during the COVID-19 confinement. The survey involved 2,745 participants, aged 18 years or older, from six regions of the country (Atlantica, Bogota, Central, Oriental, Orinoquia and Amazonia, and Pacifica). Dietary intake of foods and foods groups in grams per day before and during the confinement was estimated by considering standard serving sizes of foods. One-way ANOVA was used to analyze differences between the regions with regard to dietary behavior changes during the confinement. Differences were deemed significant at p-value < 0.05. Dietary patterns (DPs) before and during the confinement were derived from principal component analysis. Certain dietary habits were adopted by the study population during the confinement (e.g., higher frequency of snacking and home cooking), with significant differences by regions with regard to these habits, as well as regarding culinary processes. The levels of consumption of several foods also changed during the confinement, nationally and regionally. We identified three DPs before the confinement (protein-rich, carbohydrate-rich, and sugar foods patterns) and four DPs during the confinement (westernized, carbohydrate-rich, protein-rich, fish and fruits-vegetable patterns), with an explained total variance of 33 and 45%, respectively. The profile of these DPs varied to some extent between the regions; their adherence to each DP also varied (p-value < 0.001). Our results show that there were marked differences by regions in the dietary behaviors of this population during the confinement, with an overall trend toward unhealthier DPs. These results may help to shape public health nutrition interventions in Colombia during the COVID-19 pandemic and in a post-COVID stage.