Institute of Nutrition and Food Technology (INTA), University of Chile, Santiago 7810000, Chile.
Department of Nutrition, Faculty of Medicine, University of Chile, Santiago 8380453, Chile.
Nutrients. 2021 May 27;13(6):1822. doi: 10.3390/nu13061822.
The COVID-19 pandemic has been present for many months, influencing diets such as the gluten-free diet (GFD), which implies daily challenges even in non-pandemic conditions. Persons following the GFD were invited to answer online ad hoc and validated questionnaires characterizing self-perceptions of the pandemic, current clinical condition, dietary characteristics, adherence to GFD, anxiety, and depression. Of 331 participants, 87% experienced shortage and higher cost of food and 14.8% lost their jobs. Symptoms increased in 29% and 36.6% failed to obtain medical help. Although 52.3% increased food preparation at home and purchased alternative foodstuffs, 53.8% had consumed gluten-containing foods. The Health Eating Index was intermediate/"needs improvement" (mean 65.6 ± 13.3 points); in 49.9% (perception) and 44.4% (questionnaire), adherence was "bad". Anxiety and depression scores were above the cutoff in 28% and 40.4%, respectively. Adherence and mental health were strongly related. The likelihood of poor adherence was 2.3 times higher ( < 0.004) in participants declaring that pandemic altered GFD. Those suffering depressive symptoms were 1.3 times more likely to have poor adherence ( < 0.000). Depression and faulty GFD (mandatory for treatment) appear, affecting a high proportion of participants, suggesting that support measures aimed at these aspects would help improve the health condition of people that maintain GFD. Comparisons of data currently appearing in the literature available should be cautious because not only cultural aspects but conditions and timing of data collection are most variable.
COVID-19 大流行已经持续了好几个月，影响了人们的饮食，例如无麸质饮食（GFD），即使在非大流行时期也会带来日常挑战。研究人员邀请遵循 GFD 的人在线回答专门和经过验证的问卷，这些问卷描述了他们对大流行的自我认知、当前的临床状况、饮食特点、对 GFD 的依从性、焦虑和抑郁。在 331 名参与者中，87%的人表示食物短缺和价格上涨，14.8%的人失业。29%的人症状加重，36.6%的人无法获得医疗帮助。尽管 52.3%的人增加了在家准备食物的次数，并购买了替代食品，但仍有 53.8%的人食用了含麸质的食物。健康饮食指数处于中等/“有待改善”水平（平均 65.6±13.3 分）；49.9%（感知）和 44.4%（问卷）的人认为依从性“差”。焦虑和抑郁评分均高于临界值，分别为 28%和 40.4%。依从性和心理健康密切相关。在报告大流行改变了 GFD 的参与者中，不良依从的可能性增加了 2.3 倍（<0.004）。患有抑郁症状的人更有可能出现不良依从（<0.000）。抑郁和错误的 GFD（治疗必需）似乎影响了很大一部分参与者，这表明针对这些方面的支持措施将有助于改善坚持 GFD 的人的健康状况。由于不仅文化方面，而且数据收集的条件和时间都存在很大差异，因此在比较当前文献中出现的数据时应谨慎。
