As regards Spain, overweight and obesity affect more than 50 % of the adult population and nearly 30 % of children and adolescents. In addition to its association with increased risk of chronic disease and decreased life expectancy and quality of life, it is associated with substantially elevated health care costs.

To control this increased prevalence of obesity in the Spanish population, it is important to understand the dietetic factors that contribute to this tendency. For this reason, the objective of this work included within the ANIBES Study was to effectively analyze the dietary intake and to determine the adherence of the diet to the existing Dietary Guidelines in the Spanish population according to ponderal status and body fat distribution.

Considering the parameters included in the references to the Nutrition Guidelines (Ortega RM., Requejo A. et al, 2015) and to the Food Pyramid suggested by the Spanish Society of Community Nutrition (SENC) in 2015, 94.60 % of the ANIBES population did not consume the 5 recommended daily servings of fruit and vegetables. On the other hand, 84.20 % ingested less than 4 servings per day of cereals. In this sense, it is noteworthy that 83.50 % of the sample participating in the ANIBES Study consumed less than half a serving per day of whole cereals. Moreover, 66.40 % of the sample consumed less than 2 servings per day of dairy products and 59.00 % had more than one serving of meat and meat products, which contrasts with 60.00 % of this population that did not even consume half a serving of eggs or fish per day.

In this respect, the ANIBES Study highlights the elevated proportion of individuals in the Spanish population who do not meet the existing recommended dietary guidelines in terms of consumption of fruits and vegetables, cereals, whole grains, pulses and milk and dairy products while at the same time consume higher quantities of meat and meat products than recommended.

Learn more about the study Low Adherence to Dietary Guidelines in Spain, Especially in the Overweight/Obese Population: The ANIBES Study