Exploring food practices and predictive factors of specific ethnic people of Bangladesh: A cross-sectional study

Background: Bangladesh has a diversified ethnic minority with their own diverse food practice. This seems to be a cause of poor health status of these ethnic groups. This study aimed to assess the food practices and predictive factors of the specific ethnic people of Bangladesh. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 350 adult Rakhain people of Cox’s Bazar district of Bangladesh. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews. Food practice score was calculated based on healthy and unhealthy intake, categorized as 'good' or 'poor' based on a mid-point cut-off of 50%. Results: This study revealed that the majority (66%) of participants exhibited poor dietary habits significantly (p<0.01) associated with increased consumption of fast food and soft drinks, low intake of fruits, vegetables, and meat, cultural food choice, food preparation techniques, sources and purification procedure of drinking water. Poor dietary habits were significantly associated with higher odds among individuals categorized as businessmen (aOR=3.43), those with >6 family members (aOR=4.53), those with >3 children (aOR=4.89) and non-standard sleeping status (aOR=3.45). Conclusions: Many Rakhain people in Bangladesh have poor dietary habits influenced by demographics. This study identifies factors shaping ethnic food practices and recommends culturally tailored nutrition programs to improve health in these communities.