{'fraction_non_alphanumeric': 0.055419323197645906, 'fraction_numerical': 0.02501226091221187, 'mean_word_length': 4.947521865889213, 'pattern_counts': {'":': 0, '<': 2, '<?xml version=': 0, '>': 0, 'https://': 0, 'lorem ipsum': 0, 'www.': 0, 'xml': 0}, 'pii_count': 0, 'substrings_counts': 0, 'word_list_counts': {'cursed_substrings.json': 0, 'profanity_word_list.json': 0, 'sexual_word_list.json': 0, 'zh_pornsignals.json': 0}}
Dietary Quality of Bhutanese Refugee Adults Eligible for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program


 
 
 To characterize nutrient intakes and identify key food sources among Bhutanese refugee adults eligible for SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) benefits.
 
 
 
 We recruited a convenience sample of Bhutanese refugee adults (n = 54, mean age = 47 y, 83% female) residing in New Hampshire. Diet was estimated from foods recorded using three 24-hr recalls. Selected nutrients included vitamins C, D, E, and K, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, B6, folate, B12, pantothenic acid, calcium, magnesium, sodium, and saturated fat. Participants were categorized based on meeting the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) or Adequate Intake (AI) of selected nutrients. For sodium and saturated fat, meeting recommendations was defined as consuming <2300 mg/d and <10% of energy, respectively. Study visits were conducted by a trained bicultural and Nepali-speaking community health worker in partnership with a community-based organization.
 
 
 
 More than half of participants (68% to 90%) met recommendations for K, thiamin, niacin, folate, sodium, and saturated fat. However, a lower proportion (0% to 46%) consumed recommended amounts of C, D, E, riboflavin, B6, B12, pantothenic acid, calcium, and magnesium. Legume dishes and vegetable curries were leading contributors to C (40%), E (33%), B6 (21%), pantothenic acid (18%), and magnesium (25%) intakes. Milk and yogurt were primary contributors to riboflavin (23%), B12 (40%), and calcium (31%) consumption, and parboiled rice for B6 (28%) and pantothenic acid (24%).
 
 
 
 In this descriptive study of low-income Bhutanese refugee adults, the prevalence of meeting guidelines was high for some nutrients, but others fell short of recommendations. Culturally specific foods were found to be key sources of inadequately consumed nutrients, which can inform the tailoring of dietary recommendations for this community.
 
 
 
 The New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station.
