Significant Relationships Exist between Perceived and Objective Diet Quality in Young Adults

Area of Science:

• Nutrition Science
• Public Health
• Behavioral Science

Background:

• Young adults exhibit a disproportionate burden of low diet quality.
• Barriers to improving diet quality in this demographic are not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the association between perceived and objective diet quality in US young adults.
• To identify potential barriers to dietary improvement.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional study using 2013-2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data.
• Calculated Healthy Eating Index-2010 (HEI-2010) scores and component scores.
• Analyzed relationships between perceived diet quality and objective HEI-2010 scores using regression and ordered logit models.

Main Results:

• Higher perceived diet quality significantly predicted higher objective HEI-2010 scores.
• Whole fruit, whole grains, and lower intake of empty calories were associated with better perceived diet quality.
• The regression model explained 17.0% of the variance in HEI-2010 scores.

Conclusions:

• Significant relationships exist between perceived and objective diet quality in young adults.
• Other unmeasured variables significantly influence both perceived and objective diet quality.