Table 1 Summary of recommendations used and description of food groups
| Food group | Mexican Dietary Guidelines (MDG) | Recommendation used | Food group description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fruits and vegetables | 6 servings for a 2000-kcal/d (about ≥400 g/d) | ≥400 g/d (World Health Organization) | Fresh, frozen, canned, and dried fruit and vegetables, including 100% fruit juices, not including potatoes or avocado. | |
| Legumes | 2 servings/d for a 2000-kcal/d | ≥2 servings/d (MDG, one serving is 120 kcal or ~ 125 mL of cooked legumes) | Beans, lentils, chickpeas | |
| Seafood | Eat frequently | ≥35 g/d (American Heart Association) | Fish and shellfish | |
| Red meat | Limit to < 70 g/d | < 70 g/d (World Cancer Research Fund; grams are of cooked weight) | Beef, pork, lamb, and goat, including that contained in processed meat | |
| Processed meats | Consume the least possible | < 8.6 g/d (American Heart Association) | Meat preserved by smoking, curing, or salting or the addition of chemical preservatives (sausage, ham, dried meat) | |
| SSBs | Limit the intake of foods and beverages with high content of sugar, salt, and fat. Added sugars should not exceed 10% of total energy intake | < 60 kcal/d (American Heart Association) | Non–milk-based caloric beverages: industrialized (soft drinks, fruit drinks, sports drinks, energy drinks, fruit juices/nectars), home-made [coffee/tea with sugar, “agua fresca” (home-made fruit drink)] | |
| HSFAS products | < 200 kcal/d (author’s own estimation of allowable intake to comply with < 10% of added sugar and saturated fat World Health Organization recommendation) | Baked goods (cookies, granola bars, pastries), breakfast cereals, salty snacks (potato chips, tortilla/corn chips, cracker nuts, cheese puffs), candies (chocolate, chewing gum, desserts (ice-cream, gelatin, pudding, ice pop), sugar and sweeteners (white/brown sugar, honey, syrup, chocolate powder) with > 13% of saturated fat and/or > 13% of added sugar. | ||
| Dietary indices | Description | |||
| Mexican Diet Quality Index (MxDQI) | Minimum and maximum points for each component (total range 0–100): Vegetables 0 (0 servings) to 10 (≥ 3 servings); whole fruit 0 (0 servings) to 10 (≥ 3 servings); whole grains 0 (0 servings) to 5 (≥ 3 servings); legumes 0 (0 servings) to 10 (≥ 2 servings); seafood, poultry or eggs 0 (< 1 serving) to 5 (≥ 2 servings); low-fat dairy 0 (0 servings) to 5 (≥ 3.5 servings); polyunsaturated fat 0 (< 6% of total energy intake) to 5 (> 10% of total energy intake); 100% fruit juice 0 (> 250 ml) to 5 (≤125 ml); refined grains 0 (> 3 servings) to 5 (≤1 servings); red and processed meats 0 (> 1.5 servings) to 5 (≤0.5 servings); added sugars 0 (> 10% of total energy intake) to 15 (< 5% of total energy intake); sodium 0 (> 2 g) to 15 (≤1.5 g); saturated fat 0 (> 10% of total energy intake) to (< 7% total energy intake) points. Servings, ml, and g are per 2000 kcal. | |||
| Index of total food group’s recommendation met | For the main 7 food groups (fruits and vegetables, legumes, seafood, red meats, processed meat, SSBs, and HSFAS products), one point for each recommendation met; the range of possible points is 0—7. | |||