Examination of nutrient intake, assessment of dietary quality, and relationship with addiction severity in adults with substance addiction

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between substance-dependent adults' dietary consumption, diet quality assessed by Mean Adequacy Ratio (MAR), and Addiction Profile Index (BAPİ). The study included 53 substance-dependent individuals (study group) and 46 healthy adults (control group) admitted to the Alcohol and Substance Addiction Treatment Center clinic at Kayseri State Hospital. Socio-demographic characteristics, dietary intake, anthropometric measurements, and biochemical findings of participants were recorded through face-to-face interviews by the researcher. Daily energy and nutrient intake of participants were calculated, and the BAPİ self-report form was administered to substance-dependent individuals. While the employment status of individuals in the study and control groups was similar, differences were observed in terms of age, marital status, education (p<0.001), and economic status (p=0.003). The proportion of individuals with normal body weight (61.29%) in the study group was higher than controls (38.71%), while the proportion of mildly obese individuals (40.54%) was lower than controls (59.46%) (p=0.045). Daily energy and nutrient intake, as well as diet quality assessed by Mean Adequacy Ratio (MAR), were significantly higher in substance-dependent individuals compared to the control group (90% (83-94) vs. 80.42±6.13, respectively; p<0.001). According to BAPİ scores, 56.60% of participants had low addiction severity, 13.21% had moderate severity, and 30.19% had high severity. No significant relationship was found between addiction severity and diet quality, while a weak positive correlation was observed between the number of main meals and addiction severity (r=-0.474, p=<0.001). A negative relationship was determined between MAR (%) and BAPİ total score (r=-0.474, p<0.001). The study concluded that over half of the participants had low addiction severity and that the treatments initiated before follow-up at clinic contributed to better diet quality among substance-dependent individuals. Therefore, raising awareness about nutritional therapy for substance-dependent individuals within Alcohol and Substance Addiction Treatment Center settings and conducting broader research in this area are deemed necessary.