Suitability Assessment of Printed Dietary Guidelines for Pregnant Women and Parents of Infants and Toddlers From 7 European Countries

Abstract

Objectives: To evaluate selected European printed dietary guidelines for pregnant women and parents of infants and toddlers using the suitability assessment of materials (SAM) method.

Methods: A descriptive study to determine the suitability of 14 printed dietary guidelines from 7 European countries based on deductive quantitative analyses.

Results: Materials varied greatly in format and content: 35.7% of materials were rated superior and 64.3% were rated adequate according to the overall SAM score for patient education material. None of the materials were scored not suitable. Among the categories, the highest average scores were for layout and typography and the lowest average scores were for cultural appropriateness and learning stimulation and motivation. Interrater reliability ranged from Cohen's kappa of 0.37 to 0.62 (mean, 0.41), indicating fair to moderate agreement among the 3 investigators.

Conclusions and implications: Overall, the suitability of the assessed printed dietary guidelines was adequate. Based on the SAM methodology, printed dietary guidelines may increase in suitability by emphasizing aspects related to health literacy and accommodating the needs of different food cultures within a population.

Keywords: child nutrition; dietary guidelines; maternal nutrition; suitability of materials.