Compliance with the Dietary Guidelines in Chilean adolescents: a cross-sectional study of the Chilean National Health Survey 2016-2017

In Chile, compliance with the Food-Based Dietary Guidelines (GABA) ensures an adequate and ba-lanced diet. Objective: To determine compliance with five GABA recommendations and their asso-ciations with anthropometric, lifestyle, and metabolic variables, in adolescents aged between 15 and 19 years who participated in the Chilean National Health Survey 2016-2017. Subjects and Method: Cross-sectional study including 355 adolescents. Participants were divided into four groups (fulfilled 0, 1, 2, or >= 3 recommendations) using five messages from the GABA (consumption of legumes, fish, dairy products, water, and fruits and vegetables). Associations between GABA and outcome variables (weight, body mass index, waist circumference, physical activity, sleep, and metabolic varia-bles) were investigated using linear regression analyses adjusted by sociodemographic confounders. Results: 5.6% of the adolescents met three or more GABA recommendations. Of the recommenda-tions measured, the consumption of water (85%) and legumes (78.7%) presented greater complian-ce, showing differences between women and men regarding the consumption of legumes (58.6% vs. 86.4%), water (69.6% vs. 91%), and dairy products (92.9% vs. 39.1%). Adolescents with higher com-pliance with GABA had a better concentration of lower glycemia (p = 0.025). There were no other significant associations between lifestyle and anthropometric measurements. Conclusions: Adoles-cents who participated in this study presented difficulties in adhering to GABA recommendations, thus compromising the maintenance of healthy lifestyles.