Evaluation of the nutrition support provided at the 2010 Delphi Commonwealth Games: Western versus Non-Western perspectives

In the main dining hall of major international sporting events, it is standard practice to provide some nutrition support, commonly nutrition labeling and dietetic consultations, for attendees. Although this may assist athletes and officials to make optimal food choices, the level and type of support varies between events and may not be suitable for individuals from different regions. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the opinion and usage of nutrition support by athletes and officials from Western and Non-western regions at the 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games. Dietitians (n = 4) recorded occasions of service (n = 443) at a nutrition kiosk during the games period (23rd September – 14th October), while a questionnaire was randomly distributed to individuals (n = 503) in the main dining hall. Of all enquiries, 57% (n = 251) were fromWestern attendees, mainly for food provision (81%, n = 153) and special/therapeutic dietary requirements (79%, n = 56). Non-western attendees had more performance nutrition (69%, n = 52) and weight management enquiries (93%, n = 53) and requested the majority of consultations (86%, n = 51). Nutrition labels were used all or some of the time by 75% (n = 380) of attendees, however Nonwestern athletes reported more frequent use (p less than or equal to 0.001). Western attendees rated label presentation (p = 0.047), allergen information (p = 0.028) and the overall label format (p = 0.012) significantly lower than Non-western attendees. These findings suggest that although nutrition support at this event was viewed as adequate, improvements could be made to labels. Dietitians working at these events should be adequately trained in large scale food service operation and capable of consulting on food allergy/intolerance