New Epidemics Are At The Door: Leveraging Unanticipated Lessons from COVID-19 on Nutrition

ABSTRACT The number of new cases of COVID-19 variants increasing globally in recent weeks. There is a need to learn lessons from COVID-19 experiences and take new measures to better respond to new epidemics and the devastating effects of the disease. This study aimed to investigate the changes in nutritional habits of individuals with COVID-19 diagnosis in the Kayseri sample in Turkey. This cross-sectional study was conducted with 479 participants aged 18-65 years who had positive COVID-19 PCR tests. The data were collected online using the sociodemographic data form. Changes in nutritional characteristics of participants compared to the pre-pandemic period were recorded. The results showed that the rate of participants who increased paying attention to a healthy diet during the pandemic was 83.1%. They changed their food choices towards a healthier pattern supporting immunity. Eating regularly, using nutritional and herbal supplements, and eating at home increased compared to the pre-pandemic period (p