Table 2.
Scoring criteria for Healthy Meal Index
| HMI components | Awarded Score1 | Definition | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 5 | 10 | ||
| Adequacy Score | ||||
| Fruit | N | Y | Fruit, excluding juice | |
| Vegetables | N | Y | Vegetables, excluding fried potatoes | |
| Vegetable Quality | N | Y | Dark Green/Red/Orange Vegetables & Legumes | |
| Vegetable Variety | N | Y | ≥2 types of vegetables | |
| Grains | N | Y | Any whole or refined grain, excludes fried/salty snacks | |
| Whole Grains | N | Y | Any whole grain, excludes fried/salty snacks | |
| Dairy | N | Y | Dairy or dairy substitutes | |
| Protein | N | Y | Meat, nuts, legumes, eggs, meat substitutes | |
| Healthy Fats | N | Y | Fish, nuts, avocados | |
| Moderation Score | ||||
| Convenience Foods | Y | N | Take-out, fast food, prepackaged, and processed | |
| SSB or Diet Drinks | Y | N | Drinks with added sugar, diet drinks, flavored milk | |
| Added & Saturated Fats | Y | N | Fried foods, beef, pork | |
| Desserts & Sweets | Y | N | Foods with high added sugar | |
1
Y indicates the score awarded if the food was available at the meal and N indicates the score awarded if the food was unavailable.