Tailored Approach Needs Personalized Characterization for Shaping Dietary Behaviors

To analyze compliance with dietary recommendations (DR) based on the Mediterranean Diet among natives and immigrants in Spain. A cross-sectional study was carried out using the Platform of Longitudinal Studies of Immigrant Families comparing immigrant workers from Colombia, Ecuador and Morocco with Spanish workers. Adjusted odds ratios (ORa) of sufficient compliance with DR were obtained by sociodemographic variables. We also obtained the adjusted difference in means (DMa) for foods for which there was compliance with DR. Moroccans had greater compliance for meat (ORa = 7.22), eggs (ORa = 5.03) and cured-meats (ORa = 89.78). Ecuadorians for sweets (ORa = 4.03) and Spaniards for natural-juices and dairy-products. Moroccans had the greatest compliance in terms of the number of foods (DMa = 1.53), while Colombians had the least (DMa = − 0.95). Men (DMa = − 0.98), those with primary or incomplete primary education (DMa = − 0.83) and single-parent families (DMa = − 0.58) showed lower compliance. Compliance with DR was low among both Spaniards and immigrants, despite differences in levels of compliance, especially between Moroccans and Colombians.