Nutritional status in patients under methadone maintenance treatment

Background: Methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) is an effective therapeutic method for opiate addiction, but it can cause some problems such as poor dietary habits during the treatment. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the nutritional status of Iranian patients undergoing MMT.Patients and methods: In this cross-sectional study, 198 adult subjects on MMT for a duration of more than 6 months were enrolled. Measurement tool consisted of Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ), and a demographic questionnaire. The questionnaires were self-completed, except for those individuals who were illiterate.Results: Mean age of the patients was 41.2 ± 7.9 years old (93.4% male). More than half of them used heroin. Among all patients, 46.5% rarely or never consumed soya, 40.4% rarely or never consumed nuts, 27.3% never consumed seafoods and 28.3% rarely or never consumed vegetables. Seldom usage of dairy was different from 21.7% for milk to 2.0% for yogurt. Water and bread were used more frequently in patients under MMT.Conclusions: Patients on MMT had increased consumption of simple carbohydrates which can cause remarkable gain in calorie intake and body weight. Further studies are needed to investigate an appropriate diet during long-term MMT in opioid-dependent patients.