Eating Habits during the COVID-19 Lockdown in Italy: The Nutritional and Lifestyle Side Effects of the Pandemic

To limit the spread of coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, a nationwide lockdown started in Italy in March 2020. In this unpredictable situation, a cross-sectional study using an online questionnaire was carried out by the Observatory on Food Surplus, Recovery and Waste of CREA Food and Nutrition Centre. The aim of this work was to evaluate how Italian habits changed during this period, the determinants of changes, and the effect on food waste prevention. In a sample of 2678 respondents, 62% showed low Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet (AMD). During lockdown many of participants improved the quality of their diet, increasing their consumption of fruit (24.4%), vegetables (28.5%), legumes (22.1%), nuts (12%), and fish or shellfish (14%). Unfavorable changes were observed with the excessive consumption of sweets or pastries (36.9%) and comfort foods (22.7%), and a lack of physical activity (37.2%). The main novelty of this study was the examination of dietary changes identified by a cluster analysis. Respondents with generally high AMD improved their eating habits, while the habits of the respondents with generally low AMD remained unchanged. In addition, nearly 80% of respondents were sensitive to food waste. The study provides a useful contribution to the debate on nutritional recommendations in case of further lockdown.

Automated summary

To limit the spread of coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, a nationwide lockdown started in Italy in March 2020. In this unpredictable situation, a cross-sectional study using an online questionnaire was carried out to evaluate how Italian habits changed during this period, the determinants of changes, and the effect on food waste prevention. The study found that many people in Italy improved the quality of their diet during the lockdown by increasing consumption of fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, and fish or shellfish, but also showed unfavorable changes such as excessive consumption of sweets or pastries, comfort foods, and a lack of physical activity. Additionally, the study revealed that respondents with generally high adherence to the Mediterranean Diet improved their eating habits, while those with low adherence remained unchanged, and nearly 80% of respondents were sensitive to food waste.