1 Data Description

This dataset contains data on perceived compliance to the UK Eatwell guide (19 items) from a survey in 2020 of UK consumers (n=565). The original 15 item (Q1-Q15) Eatwell guide questionnaire was developed from the UK Eatwell guide (Public Health England 2018), with 4 additional items (Q16-Q19) added after examining the Vegetarian Eatwell guide (Vegetarian Society of the United Kingdom 2018) and the Vegan Eatwell guide (Vegan Society 2020). Demographic data (Type of Diet, Ethnicity, Gender and Age), Food consumption frequency (6 items) and Diet and diet choice ( 2 items) were also collected.

2 List of Questions

Data has been stored in the data tab of the file chew2020b.xlsx. A full description of each column is provided here.

2.1 Participants

The column Participants assigns a numeric code to each of the survey participants, starting with 1560 and ending with 2124.There were a total of 565 participants.

2.2 Eatwell guide questionnaire 2

Table 1. is a list of 19 questions. The original 15 item (Q1-Q15) questionnaire was developed from the UK Eatwell guide (Public Health England 2018), with 4 additional items (Q16-Q19) added after examining the Vegetarian Eatwell guide (Vegetarian Society of the United Kingdom 2018) and the Vegan Eatwell guide (Vegan Society 2020).

Table 1. Question items from the Eatwell guide questionnaire version 2
Item1 Description2
Q1 In a typical week I tend to consume the recommended amount of fruits and vegetables.
Q2 In a typical week I limit my consumption of red meats.
Q3 In a typical week I try to include low fat dairy products/alternatives.
Q4 In a typical week I tend to limit my consumption of foods high in salt.
Q5 In a typical week I tend to limit my consumptions of food/drinks high in sugar.
Q6 In a typical week I tend to use low fat cooking methods such as steaming, grilling, baking etc.
Q7 When preparing a meal, typically I consider first starchy carbohydrates, e.g. bread, rice, potatoes & pasta.
Q8 In a typical week I tend to choose unsaturated oils and spreads (e.g. vegtable based fats such as olive oil as opposed to butter and lard).
Q9 In a typical week I tend to choose wholegrain options when available to me.
Q10 In a typical week I choose to include fish as a part of my diet.
Q11 In a typical week I tend to drink water over other beverages.
Q12 In a typical week I tend to limit my consumption of alcohol.
Q13 In a typical week I tend to limit my consumption of processed meats (e.g. bacon, ham, salami).
Q14 In a typical week I try to include beans, pulses and other protein sources.
Q15 In a typical week I try to include low sugar dairy products/alternatives.
Q16 In a typical week I tend to limit my consumption of processed plant-based foods (e.g. soy or pea-protein burgers, sausages, nuggets).
Q17 In a typical week I choose to include walnuts/ground linseed/or seed rich in omega 3.
Q18 In a typical week I try to consume fortified foods containing minerals or vitamins, for example, vitamin D, iodine, selenium or Vitamin B12.
Q19 In a typical week I try to consume mineral or vitamin supplements, for example, vitamin D, iodine, selenium or vitamin B12.
1 Items are column headers in the data tab.
2 All item responses were rated on a 5-point Likert scale (1 = Strongly disagree;2 = Disagree;3=Neutral; 4 = Agree; 5 = Strongly agree).

2.3 Food Consumption

Table 2. is a list of the 5 questions examining consumption frequency of various foods.

Table 2. Food Consumption Frequency
Item1 Description2
Q55 How often do you snack on confectionary?
Q56 How often do you snack on fruit?
Q57 How often do you snack on crisps?
Q58 How often do you snack on nuts?
Q59 How often do you skip meals?
Q60 How often do eat your meals out (i.e. restaurants, cafes, takeaways)?
1 Items are column headers in the data tab.
2 All item responses were rated on a 5-point category scale (1= Never; 2= Rarely; 3= Sometimes; 4= Often; 5= Always).

2.4 Other variables

Table 3. lists the questions used to examine diet and diet choice.

Table 3. Diet and diet choice
Description1
Q612 Do you consider your diet to be healthy?
Q623 When making choices about food do you take into consideration your health?
1 Description of each question item. Items are column headers in the data tab.
2 2-point category scale (1 = Yes; 2 = No)
3 5-point category scale (1 = Never; 2 = Rarely; 3 = Sometimes; 4 = Often; 5 = Always)

2.5 Demographic variables

Table 4. is a list of 7 demographic question items.

Table 4. Demographics
Description1
Diet2 Select the dietary pattern which most closely describes your typical diet.
Ethnicity3 What is your ethnic group?
Gender4 What is your gender?
Age5 What is your age group?
BMI6 Body Mass Index
Height7 What is your height (approximately)?
Weight8 What is your weight (approximately)?
1 Description of each question item. Items are column headers in the data tab.
2 5-point category scale (Flexitarian; Omnivore; Pescatarian; Vegetarian; Vegan).
3 6-point category scale (White; Asian = Asian/Asian British (Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Chinese or any other Asian background); Black = Black/African/Caribbean/Black British; Mixed = Mixed/Multiple ethnic groups (White and Black Caribbean, White and Asian or any other mixed/multiple ethnic background); Other = Other ethnic group; PNTS = Prefer Not to Say).
4 3-point category scale (Female; Male; PNTS = Prefer Not to Say).
5 8-point category scale (18-24; 25-34;35-44;45-54; 55-64; 65-74; 75+ = Greater or equal to 75 years old; PNTS = Prefer Not to Say).
6 BMI calculated from data from Column Height and Weight.
7 Height for all individuals are in meters (m)
8 Weight for all participants are in kilograms (Kg)

References

Public Health England. 2018. “The Eatwell Guide: Helping You Eat a Healthy, Balanced Diet.” https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/742750/Eatwell_Guide_booklet_2018v4.pdf.
Vegan Society. 2020. “Vegan Eatwell Guide.” https://www.vegansociety.com/sites/default/files/uploads/downloads/The%20Vegan%20Eatwell%20Guide_1.pdf.
Vegetarian Society of the United Kingdom. 2018. “Vegetarian Eatwell Guide.” https://vegsoc.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Eatwell_guide_veggie_MAR2018.pdf.