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. 2025 Jul 9;17(14):2268.
doi: 10.3390/nu17142268.

Assessing Plant-Based Diets in Taiwan Using a Harmonized Food Description-Incorporated Framework

Yu-Syuan Wei  1 , Ming-Hua Lin  2 , Fu-Jun Chen  3 , She-Yu Chiu  4
Affiliations

Assessing Plant-Based Diets in Taiwan Using a Harmonized Food Description-Incorporated Framework

Yu-Syuan Wei et al. Nutrients. .

Abstract

Background: Exploring emerging dietary patterns, such as plant-based diets (PBD), often requires considerable effort to rebuild new systems or adapt existing food classification frameworks, presenting a substantial challenge for dietary research. Current systems were not originally designed for this purpose and vary in standardization and interoperability, complicating cross-study comparisons. This study aimed to adopt the harmonized, food description-incorporated, food classification system (HFDFC system) to develop a plant-based diet food classification system (PBDFC system), and to evaluate dietary intake and nutritional status among adults in Taiwan. Methods: A repeated cross-sectional design was applied using 24 h dietary recall data from the Nutrition and Health Survey in Taiwan (2013-2016 and 2017-2020), accessed via the national food consumption database. Adults aged 20-70 years were included. Data were processed through the HFDFC system to generate the PBDFC system. For each participant, the Plant-Based Diet Index (PDI), Body Mass Index (BMI), and Nutrient-Rich Food Index (NRF) were calculated and analyzed by age group. Results: Adults aged 46-70 had significantly higher O-PDI and H-PDI scores, lower Lh-PDI scores (all p < 0.0001), and higher NRF values. Despite higher average BMI, those in the highest H-PDI tertile had significantly lower BMI (p < 0.02). Conclusions: The HFDFC-based PBDFC system offers a flexible, scalable framework for plant-based diet classification and supports future cross-national research.

Keywords: HFDFC system; dietary quality; food classification and description system; nutrient-rich food index; plant-based diet.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Study framework.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Nutrient intakes and food group proportional intakes of participants in O-PDI.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Nutrient intakes and food group proportional intakes of participants in H-PDI.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Nutrient intakes and food group proportional intakes of participants in Lh-PDI.
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