Comparing dietary macronutrient composition and food sources between native and diasporic
Ghanaian adults
Sammanfattning
Background: Dietary acculturation may contribute to the increased burden of non-communicable
diseases (NCDs) in diasporic populations of African ancestry.
Objective: To assess nutritional composition and the contribution that traditional foods make to the
diets of native and UK-dwelling Ghanaian adults.
Design: An observational study of Ghanaian adults living in Accra (n=26) and London (n=57) was
undertaken. Three-day food records were translated to nutrient data using culturally sensitive
methods and comparisons were made for energy, macronutrients, and dietary fibre between cohorts.
The contribution of traditional foods to dietary intake was measured and the foods contributing to
each nutrient were identified.
Results: Compared to native Ghanaians, UK-Ghanaians derived a significantly higher proportion of
energy from protein (16.9±3.9 vs. 14.1±2.8%, p=0.001), fat (29.9±7.9 vs. 24.4±8.5%, p=0.005), and
saturated fat (8.5±3.4 vs. 5.8±3.7%, p<0.001) and a significantly lower energy from carbohydrate
(52.2±7.7 vs. 61.5±9.3%, p<0.001). Dietary fibre intake was significantly higher in the UK-Ghanaian
diet compared to the native Ghanaian diet (8.3±3.1 vs. 6.7±2.2 g/1,000 kcal, p=0.007). There was
significantly less energy, macronutrients, and fibre derived from traditional foods post-migration.
Non-traditional foods including breakfast cereals, wholemeal bread, and processed meats made a
greater contribution to nutrient intake post-migration.
Conclusions: Our findings show the migrant Ghanaian diet is characterised by significantly higher
intakes of fat, saturated fat, and protein and significantly lower intakes of carbohydrate; a
macronutrient profile which may promote increased risk of NCDs amongst UK-Ghanaians. These
differences in the nutrient profile are likely to be modulated by the consumption of ‘Western’ foods
observed in migrant communities.