SignificanceCurrent research linking biodiversity and human diets has used metrics without justification from a nutritional point of view. Diet species richness, or a count of the number of different species consumed per day, assesses both nutritional adequacy and food biodiversity of diets for women and children in rural areas. The positive association of food species richness with dietary quality was observed in both the wet and the dry season. Food biodiversity contributes to diet quality in vulnerable populations in areas with high biodiversity. Reporting the number of species consumed during dietary assessment provides a unique opportunity to cut across two critical dimensions of sustainable development—human and environmental health—and complements existing indicators for healthy and sustainable diets.

ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to identify factors influencing eating behavior of Ecuadorian adolescents - from the perspective of parents, school staff and adolescents - to develop a conceptual framework for adolescents' eating behavior.Study designTwenty focus groups (N = 144 participants) were conducted separately with adolescents aged 11–15 y (n (focus groups)  = 12, N (participants)  = 80), parents (n = 4, N = 32) and school staff (n = 4, N = 32) in rural and urban Ecuador. A semi-structured questioning route was developed based on the ‘Attitude, Social influences and Self-efficacy’ model and the socio-ecological model to assess the relevance of behavioral and environmental factors in low- and middle-income countries. Two researchers independently analyzed verbatim transcripts for emerging themes, using deductive thematic content analysis. Data were analyzed using NVivo 8.ResultsAll groups recognized the importance of eating healthily and key individual factors in Ecuadorian adolescents' food choices were: financial autonomy, food safety perceptions, lack of self-control, habit strength, taste preferences and perceived peer norms. Environmental factors included the poor nutritional quality of food and its easy access at school. In their home and family environment, time and convenience completed the picture as barriers to eating healthily. Participants acknowledged the impact of the changing socio-cultural environment on adolescents' eating patterns. Availability of healthy food at home and financial constraints differed between settings and socio-economic groups.ConclusionOur findings endorse the importance of investigating behavioral and environmental factors that influence and mediate healthy dietary behavior prior to intervention development. Several culture-specific factors emerged that were incorporated into a conceptual framework for developing health promotion interventions in Ecuador.

The sustainable use of natural and agricultural biodiversity in the diet can be instrumental to preserve existing food biodiversity, address malnutrition, and mitigate adverse effects of dietary changes worldwide. This systematic review of literature summarizes the current evidence on the contribution of plant and animal biodiversity to human diets in terms of energy intake, micronutrient intake, and dietary diversification. Peer-reviewed studies were searched in ten databases using pre-defined search terms. Only original studies assessing food biodiversity and dietary intake were included, resulting in a total of 34 studies. 7, 14, and 17 studies reported information in relation to energy intake, micronutrient intake, and dietary diversification, respectively. In general, locally available foods were found to be important sources of energy, micronutrients, and dietary diversification in the diet of particularly rural and forest communities of highly biodiverse ecosystems. The current evidence shows local food biodiversity as important contributor of nutritious diets. Findings are, however, limited to populations living in highly biodiverse areas. Research on the contribution of biodiversity in diets of industrialized and urban settings needs more attention. Instruments are needed that would more appropriately measure the dietary contribution of local biodiversity.