Rome, 21 Apr (beraking latest news Salute) – The confinement at home during the tightest lockdown period, that of spring 2020, has seen a generally positive change in the eating habits of Italians, although in some cases, especially among young people, forced stay at home encouraged less healthy consumption. This is what emerges from two researches conducted by the Department of Epidemiology and Prevention of the Irccs Neuromed of Pozzilli (Is).
The studies were conducted as part of two projects that examined the effects that the pandemic, beyond coronavirus-induced disease, had on the life and health of approximately 1,500 participants in the Moli-sani study (Moli-Lock Project ), to which were added 2,000 subjects recruited in an online survey launched at the end of May 2020 throughout Italy (Alt Riscovid-19 Project). The two studies were published in the International Journal of Food Science and Nutrition and Public Health Nutrition, respectively.
“Analyzing eating habits – says Simona Costanzo, Neuromed epidemiologist – we found that almost 40% of people had an improvement in their diet. In particular, there has been a greater use of typical foods of the Mediterranean diet and, in particular, not negligible, although predictable, a tendency to buy local products. This phenomenon mainly concerned the older age groups. Another interesting feature is that people who improved their nutrition also did more physical activity and lost weight ”.
In other words, for many citizens, the lockdown was an opportunity to pay more attention to their nutrition and health, but with significant generational differences. A picture that also emerges from the second scientific work, which focused above all on the consumption of so-called ultra-processed foods, foods that are subjected to multiple treatments, mostly industrial, and which are generally considered less healthy. Adults, especially the elderly and those residing in southern Italy, consumed less. Different speech for young people, who have indulged in a greater consumption of snacks, convenience foods, sweets or sugary drinks.
“The most important element – says Marialaura Bonaccio, first author of the study on Public Health Nutrition – is that healthy choices have ‘grouped’, so to speak. Those who have chosen to consume fewer ultra-processed foods have also done more activity physics and reduced its weight ”.
“The lockdown – comments Licia Iacoviello, Director of the Department of Epidemiology and Neuromed Prevention and full professor of Hygiene at the University of Insubria in the Varese office – has put a strain on all citizens. The long hours spent at home, the lack of many activities, had inevitable repercussions on food choices. Some saw the situation as an opportunity to be attentive to their health and also to rediscover the foods of our tradition, a factor certainly favored by the time spent at home. others – he underlines – especially among young people and among those who had a non-optimal lifestyle even before the pandemic, the confinement had a different effect: as if they had faced the situation by indulging in chocolate, sweets, snacks and, in general, food that give immediate satisfaction and require less effort “.