Are the Ethiopian dietary guidelines in line with what people believe to be a healthy diet and what they consume

Unhealthy consumption patterns are often assumed to be based on a lack of knowledge. One of the purposes of the newly developed Ethiopian food-based dietary guidelines (FBDG) is to play a role in nutrition education and messaging. However, studies on nutrition education show mixed results and nutrition education programs are often most effective when they also include increased access to food, suggesting that knowledge alone is often not enough to change diets. This report considers the current beliefs around a healthy diet as well as the consumption patterns of rural Ethiopians, and their alignment with the FBDG, to inform future activities which plan to use the guidelines as a tool to change the consumption patterns towards healthier diets. Methods: Data comes from quantitative and qualitative data collected through the baseline study of the Resilient Agriculture for Inclusive and Sustainable Ethiopian Food Systems (RAISE-FS) project. Quantitative data on current consumption patterns were collected using the diet quality questionnaire (DQQ). Qualitative data on the current beliefs on a healthy diet were collected using focus group discussions (FGD). Result: the current perception of a healthy diet is not in line with the guidelines for the following food groups: consumption of sugar, the consumption of legumes by men, the consumption of vegetables in the previous Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region (SNNPR) region, the consumption of vegetable oil by all, especially by women, and the consumption of nuts and seeds. The current consumption patterns and other research suggest that nutrition messaging could help change diets to be more in line with the Ethiopian FBDG. However, while people are aware of the healthiness of fruits, animal-source foods, and vegetables (in Oromia and Amhara) and the recommendation to consume at least four food groups per meal, people are still not able to regularly consume these foods. Nutrition messaging alone will probably have a limited effect on increasing the consumption of these foods.