Diet Quality of Marshallese Mothers of Young Children in Northwest Arkansas: An Exploratory Study

Objective: To characterize the dietary patterns of Marshallese mothers of young children in Northwest Arkansas, informing the cultural adaptation of nutrition education curricula. Design: An exploratory cross-sectional study was conducted, in which Marshallese women with children under 12 months completed 3 telephone-administered 24-hour dietary recalls with a trained bilingual Marshallese interviewer. Diet quality was characterized using the Healthy Eating Index (HEI)-2020. A food-level analysis identified top food groupings contributing to total energy and HEI-2020 components. Setting: Northwest Arkansas. Participants: Marshallese mothers with children <12 months. Results: 29 women were recruited, 20 completed 2 or 3 dietary recalls. Median age was 25.5 years. Diet quality by HEI-2020 was 46.4 (max score 100). White rice was the top contributor to total energy; high seafood/plant protein and fatty acid diet quality component scores were influenced by high fish intakes. Conclusions: Diet quality was low. Key adaptations include reducing rice portion sizes, while emphasizing lean proteins and fruits/vegetables. Cultural adaptation of nutrition education is essential to improve diet quality among communities with varying dietary practices.