The transit of Russian nation nutrition at the turn of the 20th and 21st centuries

Abstract

The assessment of the individual dietary intake of the population acquired critical importance in the Russian Federation when implementing socio-economic reforms in the 1990s. This was due to the difficulties of the transition period from a planned economy to market relations, which was reflected in a decrease in the level of the socio-economic condition of the population. The purpose of this study was to analyze objective and reliable information about the nature of consumption of nutrients and energy, as well as food products by the adult population of Russia in the period 1994-2018. Material and methods. The paper analyzes and summarizes the results of sample surveys of household budgets conducted by the Federal State Statistics Service (Rosstat) in 1991-2018 and of large-scale epidemiological studies of the actual dietary intake of the population of the Russian Federation, which are presented by the data of the "Russian Longitudnal Monitoring Surveys" (RLMS) in 1994-2012 and large-scale nutrition surveys conducted by Rosstat in all constituent entities of the Russian Federation in 2013 and 2018. All nutrition surveys were carried out according to a unified methodology for collecting, processing and reporting actual data developed at the Federal Research Center of Nutrition, Biotechnology and Food Safety. Using a unified methodological basis allows us to build an analysis of the dietary intake of the population for the period from 1994 to 2018. Results. The objective data on the consumption of energy, nutrients, individual and aggregated groups of food products were analyzed depending on a number of socio-demographic and socio-economic variables that determine the nutrition pattern of the population of the Russian Federation during the period of economic reforms in the 1990s and 2000s. According to budget surveys, over the past years, the structure of the diet in households has changed significantly: the consumption of potatoes decreased by 45% and bakery products by 6%, the consumption of fish and fruits almost doubled, the consumption of meat products increased by 60%, of vegetables by 20%. According to epidemiological studies, the fat content increased from 31 to 36.8% of calorie content, the protein content didn't changed significantly, although in recent years there has been a tendency to increase to 12.1% of calorie content. The average per capita consumption of protein and fat by adults, including saturated fat acids were significantly higher in 2005-2018, compared with the 1990s, both in absolute quantities and in per cents of the caloric intake. At the same time, the consumption of total carbohydrates in per cents of the calorie intake and the amount of dietary fiber in the diet decreased. Parallel to fat intake changes, an increase in the prevalence of overweight and obesity in the adult population has been shown. A consistent decrease in adult consumption of added sugar in per cents of the total calorie intake was revealed from 14.0% in 1994 to 12.3-12.8% in 2012-2018. Changes in the structure of energy consumption and macronutrients are due to changes in the structure of the food ration set that have occurred over the years of observation. The total consumption of dairy products in terms of milk increased: the consumption of the amount of dairy products (drinks and "spoons"), curd products and cheeses increased, only the consumption of drinking milk did not change. In 2012 and 2013 consumption of meat products and sausages was significantly higher than in previous years. There was an increase in the consumption of fish, vegetables, fruits, fats and oils, juices in the 2000s compared with the 1990s. On the contrary, over the years of observation, a consistent decrease in the consumption of the total grain products was observed. These changes in the consumption of macronutrients and foods are a characteristic feature of the transition period from "poor" to "rich" dietary intake and the increase in 2000s in the diet energy density due to an increase in the proportion of fat and a decrease in the proportion of carbohydrates, which contribute to weight gain and an increase in the prevalence of overweight and obesity. The dependence of the structure of the diet on the economic situation of the family has been established, which implies the problem of malnutrition, both general malnutrition and insufficient intake of micronutrients (vitamins and minerals), in poor families. Conclusion. An assessment of the current nutritional status of the Russian population implies a double burden of disruption, determined both by the simultaneous presence of malnutrition problems and the increase in the prevalence of overweight and obesity.