Compliance with dietary goals in a Queensland community

Dietary goals designed to improve nutritional health and lower the risk of chronic disease have been drawn up in Australia. Compliance with quantified goals was assessed in a random sample of 91 residents of Nambour, a typical community in southeast Queensland. Compliance was highest for alcohol and cholesterol goals. About three-quarters of the sample complied with the goal of limiting alcohol intake to five per cent of energy intake, and over half complied with the goal to limit daily cholesterol intake to less than 300mg. Compliance was lower for total fat and fibre goals. About 40% of the sample complied with the goal of consuming less than 33% of energy as fat or the goal of consuming 30g or more fibre per day. Compliance was slightly better for women than for men. Only a small proportion of the sample complied with goals to increase total carbohydrate intake to 55% or more of energy, or to limit saturated fatty acid intake to 10% of energy. For each of the goals, some were far from complying. In general, compliance with goals was lowest for males under 40 and was also low for women under 40.