{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,3]],"date-time":"2026-09-03T15:30:31Z","timestamp":1788449431851,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":44,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,26]],"date-time":"2025-09-26T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1758844800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Nutr."],"abstract":"<jats:sec><jats:title>Background\/objectives<\/jats:title><jats:p>Healthy eating is essential to maintaining health and preventing disease. However, various economic and social factors make it difficult to access an adequate diet in many regions, especially in low-middle income countries (LMIC). In Ecuador, the economy underwent significant changes following the SARS-COV-2 pandemic, affecting food prices and, therefore, the population\u2019s ability to maintain a healthy diet. We want to showcase the costs of a healthy diet in Quito and Guayaquil by evaluating the price of food items sold to consumers in major supermarket chains\/food suppliers.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title><jats:p>A diet model was designed based on foods from the basic family basket (BFB) and standard nutritional recommendations. Prices were collected through visits to supermarkets and 3 types of diet were analysed: regular diet with BFB portions, regular diet with healthy portions, and our healthy diet model.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Results<\/jats:title><jats:p>The cost of a healthy diet is significantly higher than a regular diet; with the price of healthy eating in Ecuador, in 2023, being $184.66 per person per month, which represents 41% of the unified basic salary (or 3.2 times more expensive than the BFB), making it unaffordable for many families with scarce resources. In Quito and Guayaquil, the most expensive foods in a healthy diet were dairy products, eggs, and meat.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title><jats:p>Healthy eating in the two major cities of Ecuador represents almost half of the basic monthly salary, making it inaccessible to most families with limited resources, and becoming a matter of public health. Our study highlights the need for public policies to improve access to healthy foods as well as local policies to incentivize direct trade of food items (i.e., directly from the producer to the final consumer).<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fnut.2025.1516106","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,26]],"date-time":"2025-09-26T15:25:06Z","timestamp":1758900306000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":3,"title":["The cost of healthy eating in two major cities in Ecuador: a comparative analysis"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"12","author":[{"given":"Leidy","family":"Gonzabay-Parrales","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Lesly","family":"Alay Chimborazo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Giuliana","family":"Altamirano Flores","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Diana","family":"Oca\u00f1a Grijalva","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Dom\u00e9nica","family":"Arias C\u00e1rdenas","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jair","family":"G\u00f3mez Rubiano","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Valeria","family":"Hern\u00e1ndez Andrade","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Nathalia","family":"P\u00e9rez Molina","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Mart\u00edn","family":"Ter\u00e1n Navas","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Camila","family":"Contero G\u00f3mez","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Fatima","family":"Romo Guaranda","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Cecilia Alejandra","family":"Garc\u00eda R\u00edos","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jose E.","family":"Leon-Rojas","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,26]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1090","DOI":"10.1001\/jamainternmed.2020.2176","article-title":"Association between healthy eating patterns and risk of cardiovascular disease","volume":"180","author":"Shan","year":"2020","journal-title":"JAMA Intern Med"},{"key":"ref2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"965","DOI":"10.1038\/s41380-018-0237-8","article-title":"Healthy dietary indices and risk of depressive outcomes: a systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies","volume":"24","author":"Lassale","year":"2019","journal-title":"Mol Psychiatry"},{"key":"ref3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"272","DOI":"10.2215\/CJN.06190616","article-title":"Healthy dietary patterns and risk of mortality and ESRD in CKD: a Meta-analysis of cohort studies","volume":"12","author":"Kelly","year":"2017","journal-title":"Clin J Am Soc Nephrol"},{"key":"ref4","volume-title":"Regional overview of food security and nutrition \u2013 Latin America and the Caribbean 2022","year":"2023"},{"key":"ref5","article-title":"UN report: global hunger numbers rose to as many as 828 million in 2021 [media release] United Nations","author":"Rigillo","year":"2022"},{"key":"ref6","volume-title":"Documento T\u00e9cnico de las Gu\u00edas Alimentarias Basadas en Alimentos (GABA) del Ecuador. GABA-ECU 2018. Quito-Ecuador","year":"2018"},{"key":"ref7","volume-title":"Evaluaci\u00f3n de los recursos forestales mundiales 2015: Informe Nacional Ecuador","year":"2014"},{"key":"ref8","article-title":"Tomo I: Encuesta Nacional de Salud y Nutrici\u00f3n de la poblaci\u00f3n ecuatoriana de cero a 59 a\u00f1os. ENSANUT-ECU 2012. Ministerio de Salud P\u00fablica\/Instituto Nacional de Estad\u00edsticas y Censos. Quito-Ecuador","author":"Freire","year":"2014"},{"key":"ref9","article-title":"Bolet\u00edn T\u00e9cnico N\u00b008-2023-IPC (Technical Bulletin Nos. 08-2023-IPC; p. 16). Instituto Nacional de Estad\u00edstica y Censos","author":"Vera","year":"2023"},{"key":"ref10","volume-title":"Bolet\u00edn T\u00e9cnico N\u00b009-2023-IPC (Technical Bulletin Nos. 09-2023-IPC; p. 16)","author":"Vera","year":"2023"},{"key":"ref11","article-title":"Statista","year":"2024"},{"key":"ref12","year":"2023"},{"key":"ref13","volume-title":"Elementos Fundamentales en el C\u00e1lculo de Dietas","author":"Ascencio Peralta","year":"2017"},{"key":"ref14","volume-title":"Nutrici\u00f3n y diet\u00e9tica cl\u00ednica","author":"Salas-Salvad\u00f3","year":"2019"},{"key":"ref15","volume-title":"Informe sobre Legumbres, Nutrici\u00f3n y Salud (Adaptado al Reglamento relativo a las declaraciones nutricionales y de propiedades saludables en los alimentos)","author":"Enjamio Perales","year":"2017"},{"key":"ref16","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"245","DOI":"10.1079\/PHN2003592","article-title":"The joint WHO\/FAO expert consultation on diet, nutrition and the prevention of chronic diseases: process, product and policy implications","volume":"7","author":"Nishida","year":"2004","journal-title":"Public Health Nutr"},{"key":"ref17","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"585","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fct.2017.04.002","article-title":"Systematic review of the potential adverse effects of caffeine consumption in healthy adults, pregnant women, adolescents, and children","volume":"109","author":"Wikoff","year":"2017","journal-title":"Food Chem Toxicol"},{"key":"ref18","year":"2020"},{"key":"ref19","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"481","DOI":"10.1080\/20014091091904","article-title":"Gelatin: a valuable protein for food and pharmaceutical industries: review","volume":"41","author":"Djagny","year":"2001","journal-title":"Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr"},{"key":"ref20","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1515","DOI":"10.3390\/nu10101515","article-title":"Dairy foods and body mass index over 10-year: evidence from the Caerphilly prospective cohort study","volume":"10","author":"Guo","year":"2018","journal-title":"Nutrients"},{"key":"ref21","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"713","DOI":"10.1016\/j.amjmed.2020.12.017","article-title":"Fish consumption and cardiovascular health: a systematic review","volume":"134","author":"Krittanawong","year":"2021","journal-title":"Am J Med"},{"key":"ref22","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"S351","DOI":"10.1093\/advances\/nmy110","article-title":"Animal and plant protein sources and cardiometabolic health","volume":"10","author":"Mariotti","year":"2019","journal-title":"Adv Nutr"},{"key":"ref23","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"2255","DOI":"10.1017\/S1368980012005447","article-title":"Identifying whole grain foods: a comparison of different approaches for selecting more healthful whole grain products","volume":"16","author":"Mozaffarian","year":"2013","journal-title":"Public Health Nutr"},{"key":"ref24","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1453","DOI":"10.1001\/jamainternmed.2016.4182","article-title":"Association of animal and plant protein intake with all-cause and cause-specific mortality","volume":"176","author":"Song","year":"2016","journal-title":"JAMA Intern Med"},{"key":"ref25","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1446","DOI":"10.3390\/nu16101446","article-title":"Nutritional value of meat and meat products and their role in human health","volume":"16","author":"Stadnik","year":"2024","journal-title":"Nutrients"},{"key":"ref26","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"63","DOI":"10.3390\/nu9010063","article-title":"Cheese consumption and risk of all-cause mortality: a meta-analysis of prospective studies","volume":"9","author":"Tong","year":"2017","journal-title":"Nutrients"},{"key":"ref27","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"315","DOI":"10.1186\/s12889-016-2996-y","article-title":"Testing the price and affordability of healthy and current (unhealthy) diets and the potential impacts of policy change in Australia","volume":"16","author":"Lee","year":"2016","journal-title":"BMC Public Health"},{"key":"ref28","article-title":"Salario B\u00e1sico Unificado en Ecuador ser\u00e1 de USD 460 en 2024","year":"2023"},{"key":"ref29","volume-title":"Informaci\u00f3n sobre Pobreza y Equidad Quito C\u00f3mo Vamos 2023","year":"2023"},{"key":"ref30","article-title":"An\u00e1lisis del precio de una dieta saludable y no saludable en la Regi\u00f3n Metropolitana de Chile","author":"Verdugo","year":"2016"},{"key":"ref31","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1166787","DOI":"10.3389\/fpubh.2023.1166787","article-title":"Association of monetary diet cost of foods and diet quality in Spanish older adults","volume":"11","author":"Bouzas","year":"2023","journal-title":"Front Public Health"},{"key":"ref32","article-title":"Ecuatorianos necesitan el 21% del salario b\u00e1sico para comer saludable","author":"Coba","year":"2022"},{"key":"ref33","volume-title":"El estado de la seguridad alimentaria y la nutrici\u00f3n en el mundo 2022","year":"2022"},{"key":"ref34","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1590\/0102-311X00104715","article-title":"Pre\u00e7o dos alimentos no Brasil: Prefira prepara\u00e7\u00f5es culin\u00e1rias a alimentos ultraprocessados","volume":"32","author":"Claro","year":"2016","journal-title":"Cad Saude Publica"},{"key":"ref35","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"946","DOI":"10.3390\/su12030946","article-title":"Determinants of food insecurity in rural households: the case of the Paute River basin of Azuay Province, Ecuador","volume":"12","author":"Cordero-Ahiman","year":"2020","journal-title":"Sustainability"},{"key":"ref36","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e004277","DOI":"10.1136\/bmjopen-2013-004277","article-title":"Do healthier foods and diet patterns cost more than less healthy options? A systematic review and meta-analysis","volume":"3","author":"Rao","year":"2013","journal-title":"BMJ Open"},{"key":"ref37","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"348","DOI":"10.3390\/nu9040348","article-title":"Nutrition Society of new Zealand Annual Conference Held in Christchurch, New Zealand, 8\u20139 December 2016","volume":"9","author":"Brown","year":"2017","journal-title":"Nutrients"},{"key":"ref38","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"461","DOI":"10.3390\/nu10040461","article-title":"Nutritionally optimized, culturally acceptable, cost-minimized diets for low income Ghanaian families using linear programming","volume":"10","author":"Nyk\u00e4nen","year":"2018","journal-title":"Nutrients"},{"key":"ref39","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"80","DOI":"10.1186\/s12966-020-00981-0","article-title":"A tale of two cities: the cost, price-differential and affordability of current and healthy diets in Sydney and Canberra, Australia","volume":"17","author":"Lee","year":"2020","journal-title":"Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act"},{"key":"ref40","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1692","DOI":"10.3390\/nu15071692","article-title":"Developing a Mediterranean healthy food basket and an updated Australian healthy food basket modelled on the Australian guide to healthy eating","volume":"15","author":"Bracci","year":"2023","journal-title":"Nutrients"},{"key":"ref41","article-title":"Employee earnings and hours, Australia","year":"2023"},{"key":"ref42","article-title":"What is the Australian minimum wage?","year":"2024"},{"key":"ref43","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e3","DOI":"10.1017\/S1368980023002665","article-title":"Cost and affordability of healthy diets in Vietnam","volume":"27","author":"Van","year":"2024","journal-title":"Public Health Nutr"},{"key":"ref44","article-title":"Encuesta Nacional de Empleo, Desempleo y Subempleo (ENEMDU)","year":"2023"}],"container-title":["Frontiers in Nutrition"],"original-title":[],"link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/fnut.2025.1516106\/full","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,26]],"date-time":"2025-09-26T15:25:10Z","timestamp":1758900310000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/fnut.2025.1516106\/full"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,26]]},"references-count":44,"alternative-id":["10.3389\/fnut.2025.1516106"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/fnut.2025.1516106","relation":{},"ISSN":["2296-861X"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2296-861X","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,26]]},"article-number":"1516106"}}