Dietary fiber consumption and composition of foods in “by‐the‐kilo” restaurants

Abstract

Purpose

In Brazil, studies on dietary fiber consumption are scarce. The greatest difficulty is to obtain reliable data on the fiber content of foods that are part of Brazilians’ eating habits, which involves adjusting laboratory methodology. It is extremely important to evaluate the average daily fiber intake on a regional basis, considering the heterogeneous eating habits of the Brazilians. The study aims to estimate the average dietary fiber content of meals eaten in “by‐the‐kilo” restaurants.

Design/methodology/approach

The foods used in the preparation of 1,907 meals consumed during one month in four restaurants in the city of São Paulo were studied. Intake, nutritional composition, and fiber analyses focusing on average lunch intakes were performed based on the RDA and SBAN (Brazilian Food and Nutrition Society) recommendations. Intake and nutritional composition results were compared with the values of a control meal theoretically prepared. A total of 40 samples of preparations using fiber‐rich foods were analyzed and their dietary fibers and soluble and insoluble fiber fractions were determined by enzymatic‐gravimetric method.

Findings

The results showed that a lunch meal alone accounts for 69.2 per cent of the SBAN recommendation and 39.5 per cent of the maximum RDA for dietary fiber.

Originality/value

Foods served in “by‐the‐kilo” restaurants proved to be good sources of fiber, and their insoluble‐to‐soluble fiber ratios were similar to the recommendations.

Citation

Simioni de Abreu, E., Lima Garbelotti, M. and Aparecida Ferraz Silva Torres, E. (2005), "Dietary fiber consumption and composition of foods in “by‐the‐kilo” restaurants", Nutrition & Food Science, Vol. 35 No. 6, pp. 386-392. https://doi.org/10.1108/00346650510633783