Adherence

Among Behavior Change Techniques (BCTs), self-monitoring, feedback on performance, and focus on past success are the only techniques associated with improved diet quality (HEI-C) in metabolic syndrome counseling, while frequent goal setting and feedback on performance (when excessive) are associated with poorer outcomes.

When counseling for metabolic syndrome, prioritize self-monitoring (e.g., food logs), providing feedback on performance, and focusing on past successes. Avoid frequent goal setting, as it may be counterproductive. Most other standard BCTs (like action planning or motivational interviewing) did not show a significant association with diet quality improvements in this study.