What is the appropriate use and interpretation of the Household Dietary Diversity Score (HDDS)?
The HDDS is an indicator required by Food for Peace that measures household access to food, one of the components of food security. While the indicator sounds as if it measures the nutritional quality of a household’s diet, it is not designed to be used that way. It is a proxy for a household’s socioeconomic status. Households that are better off eat a more diverse diet. In other words, a higher HDDS corresponds to a higher socioeconomic level and greater food security.
