Changes in ultra-processed food consumption during the first Italian lockdown following the COVID-19 pandemic and major correlates: results from two population-based cohorts. (Special Issue: Maternal and child nutrition in sub-Saharan Africa.)

ABSTRACT

Objective: To evaluate changes in ultra-processed food (UPF) intake and its major correlates during the first Italian lockdown (9 March-3 May 2020). Design: Retrospective observational study. Setting: Italy. Participants: We analysed 2992 subjects (mean age 57.9 +or- 15.3 years, 40.4% men). Individual participant data were pooled from two retrospective cohorts (1) The Moli-LOCK cohort consists of 1501 adults, a portion of the larger Moli-sani study (n 24 325;2005-2010) who were administered a phone-based questionnaire to assess lifestyles and psychological factors during confinement and (2) the Analysis of Long Term Risk of Covid-19 Emergency is a web-based survey of 1491 individuals distributed throughout Italy who self-responded to the same questionnaire by using Google forms. UPF was defined according to NOVA classification based on degree of food processing. An UPF score was created by assigning 1 point to increased consumption, -1 to decreased and 0 point for unchanged intakes of nineteen food items, with higher values indicating an increase in UPF during confinement.