Adolescents' diet quality worsened over time in Niterói, Brazil (2003–2008)

From 2003 to 2008, the Brazilian Revised Healthy Eating Index (BHEI-R) score for female adolescents decreased from 64.1 to 62.4 (p = 0.04).

• Overall scores for 'total vegetables', 'dark green and orange vegetables', and 'meat, eggs, and legumes' declined between 2003 and 2008.
• The score for 'milk and dairy' increased from 4.0 to 5.2 (p < 0.01) during the same period.
• Female adolescents experienced a decline in dietary quality, evidenced by decreases in multiple food categories.
• Male adolescents showed a decrease only in the 'whole grains' category, from 0.2 to 0.1 (p = 0.04).

Simplified