Interventions in health offerings and allergenic food management that shifted towards Mediterranean dietary patterns were found to be effective for improving the quality of restaurant menus.
In recent decades, there has been a rise in the consumption of restaurant meals, due to work, study, and leisure commitments. Restaurants can be potential targets for interventions in healthy meal offerings. This is useful for improving the food environment as well as individual dietary behaviors.
This randomized controlled trial, published in the journal Nutrients, investigated the outcomes of providing healthy offerings at restaurants for managing food allergies or intolerances and promoting healthy dietary behaviors.
Restaurant Characteristics
The clinical trial included eight restaurants in the intervention group and ten restaurants in the control group in Tarragona, Spain. The control group included two rural, six urban, and two coastal restaurants, whereas the intervention group comprised two rural, three urban, and three coastal restaurants. While the restaurant characteristics were comparable, the mean number of recruited employees was significantly higher in the control group (p = 0.016). Following the intervention of healthy offerings, an increase in adherence to the Mediterranean diet was observed, based on the mandatory and optional criteria.
Gluten Allergy Management
In the control and intervention groups, there was a 50% statistically significant increase in the placement of gluten-free oil, vinegar, sauces, and baskets for exclusive use or dingle-dose portions on the restaurant tables. There were no inter-treatment differences across the two groups of restaurants.
The Study Used a Traffic Light Rating System
Based on a traffic light rating of intervention and control group restaurants, the authors observed no intra-treatment or inter-treatment differences for starters and main dishes on the menu. However, the energy decrease for deserts was statistically significant in the control group and borderline significant in the intervention group.
Nutrient, Gluten-Free, and Allergen-Free Content of Foods
Except for desserts, there were no inter or intra-treatment differences in the nutrient, gluten-free, and allergen-free content of foods at the restaurants. In the intervention group, there was a significant decrease in the energy, carbohydrate, and sugar content of desserts and a significant increase in allergen-free content compared to the control study.
In summary, the intervention in healthy offerings contributed substantially to restaurant gluten and food allergy management. The intervention indicates a potential role for greater incorporation of the Mediterranean diet into restaurant menus for achieving these goals.
Source:
Tarro, L., Mandracchia, F., Queral, J., Besora-Moreno, M., Vilanova, N., Valls, R. M., Pedret, A., Solà, R., & Llauradó, E. (2023). Impact of an intervention on healthy offerings and allergenic food management in restaurants: A parallel randomized controlled study. Nutrients, 15(23), 4869. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15234869
