Adherence to dietary recommendations according to the General Dietary Behavior Inventory (GDBI) and its association with bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) parameters among young, healthy and normal weight women

TL;DR

This study examined dietary behavior in young, healthy women and found no link between healthier eating and body composition metrics.

Contribution

The study provides new insights into the relationship between dietary behavior scores and body composition in a normal-weight population.

Findings

Higher GDBI scores were not associated with lower BMI or better body composition in this sample.

The mean GDBI score was similar to a previous study, but specific dietary item scores differed.

No significant correlations were found between GDBI scores and BIA parameters.

Abstract

The General Dietary Behavior Inventory (GDBI) is a low effort instrument with only 16 items to assess the general dietary behavior based on the dietary recommendations of the World Health Organization and the German Nutrition Society. In an online survey with a convenience sample, higher total GDBI scores indicating healthier dietary behavior were associated with a lower body mass index (BMI).

Since mean value of the self-reported BMI in that sample was in the overweight range, the aim of the current study was to examine the adherence to dietary recommendations using the GDBI in a sample of young and healthy women at the lower normal BMI range.

In total, 63 women aged 22.2 ± 2.2 years with a mean BMI of 20.4 ± 1.0 kg/m2 were included in this study. Body composition was determined using bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA). GDBI sum score and single item scores were compared with those of the validation study. Spearman correlations were calculated between the GDBI sum score and age, BMI, waist circumference (WC), and BIA parameters.

The mean GDBI score of 55.76 ± 6.46 in this sample was similar to that of the validation study. Regarding single items, the most pronounced difference compared with the validation study was found for the scores of item 2 indicating lower consumption of animal products in the current study. However, this item was not concordant with all further items. The GDBI sum score correlated with age, but neither with BMI nor WC nor any BIA parameter.

In conclusion, other than expected we did not find a higher GDBI score compared with that of the validation study. Moreover, in this homogenous, healthy sample of young women at the lower normal BMI range, healthier dietary behavior as indicated by higher GDBI scores does not explain differences in BMI or body composition.

The study is registered at the German Clinical Trials Register (DRKS-ID: DRKS00030472). Date of registration: October 10th, 2022, retrospectively registered.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s40795-026-01260-0.

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