Objective: To investigate the perceived importance of information about dietary fibre with regard
to population socio -demographic characteristics and consumption patterns.
Methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted from September to November, 2016, in six
different counties and 57 cities across Romania, and was part of a larger project that had nine other
countries as well. Data of the Romanian subjects was collected using a validated questionnaire that
was disseminated across the 10 countries at the same time. Knowledge about dietary fibre was
explored through 10 questions, and the respondents were asked to answer on a 5-point Likert scale
varying from 1 (totally disagree) to 5 (totally agree). SPSS 22 was used for data anaylsis.
Results: Of the 670 subjects, 358 (53.4%) were females, and the overall mean age was 35.81±15.61
years (range: 18-89 years). There were 298 (44.5%) subjects with a university degree, 314(46.9%) had
completed high school and 57 (8.5%) had done primary school. Besides, 568 (84.8%) participants
lived in an urban environment. Internet was the main source of getting information for 368(54.9%)
subjects, while the lowest was hospitals 122 (18.2%). The percentage of correct answers regarding
knowledge about health effects of dietary fibre was 23.12%. Most accurate answers were related to
deficiency of vitamins and minerals 370 (55.5%), breast cancer 202(30.3%), vision problems 202(30.3%)
and diabetes 168 (25.2%). The question with least accurate answer was the one about general
preventive characteristics of dietary fibres 65 (9.7%).
Conclusions: A proper and friendly way to transmit information about the importance of dietary
fibre consumption is critical in promoting healthy diet patterns and in preventing non-transmissible
diseases.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
