scholarly journals Validity of a short food frequency questionnaire for estimating nutrient intake in elderly people

1993 ◽  
Vol 70 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. C. Horwath

Nutrient intakes estimated using a short self-administered semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) were compared with results obtained from five 2 d diet records using household measures in a group of fifty-three elderly people (mean age 70 years) in Dunedin, New Zealand in 1989. Mean intakes for most nutrients were less than 5% different between the two methods. Correlations between the nutrient intake values (excluding supplements) from the diet records and those from the FFQ ranged from 0·34 for Zn in women to more than 0·75 for protein, Zn and Ca in men. For most nutrients, at least 70% of the subjects when classified by the food records fell into the same quintile or into the within-one- quintile category when classified by the FFQ. These data indicate that in elderly subjects a simple self- administered semi-quantitative FFQ can provide very similar information (for both group and individual intakes for many nutrients) to that obtained from 10 d of careful diet recording.

2016 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. NMI.S38374 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ayumi Yanagisawa ◽  
Noriko Sudo ◽  
Yukiko Amitani ◽  
Yuko Caballero ◽  
Makiko Sekiyama ◽  
...  

This study aimed to develop and evaluate the validity of a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) for rural Rwandans. Since our FFQ was developed to assess malnutrition, it measured energy, protein, vitamin A, and iron intakes only. We collected 260 weighed food records (WFRs) from a total of 162 Rwandans. Based on the WFR data, we developed a tentative FFQ and examined the food list by percent contribution to energy and nutrient intakes. To assess the validity, nutrient intakes estimated from the FFQ were compared with those calculated from three-day WFRs by correlation coefficient and cross-classification for 17 adults. Cumulative contributions of the 18-item FFQ to the total intakes of energy and nutrients reached nearly 100%. Crude and energy-adjusted correlation coefficients ranged from -0.09 (vitamin A) to 0.58 (protein) and from -0.19 (vitamin A) to 0.68 (iron), respectively. About 50%-60% of the participants were classified into the same tertile. Our FFQ provided acceptable validity for energy and iron intakes and could rank Rwandan adults in eastern rural area correctly according to their energy and iron intakes.


2001 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 847-858 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sheila A Bingham ◽  
Ailsa A Welch ◽  
Alison McTaggart ◽  
Angela A Mulligan ◽  
Shirley A Runswick ◽  
...  

AbstractObjective:To describe methods and dietary habits of a large population cohort.Design:Prospective assessment of diet using diet diaries and food-frequency questionnaires, and biomarkers of diet in 24-h urine collections and blood samples.Setting:Free living individuals aged 45 to 75 years living in Norfolk, UK.Subjects:Food and nutrient intake from a food-frequency questionnaire on 23 003 men and women, and from a 7-day diet diary from 2117 men and women. Nitrogen, sodium and potassium excretion was obtained from single 24-h urine samples from 300 individuals in the EPIC cohort. Plasma vitamin C was measured for 20 846 men and women.Results:The food-frequency questionnaire (FFQ) and the food diary were able to determine differences in foods and nutrients between the sexes and were reliable as judged by repeated administrations of each method. Plasma vitamin C was significantly higher in women than men. There were significant (P<0.001) differences in mean intake of all nutrients measured by the two different methods in women but less so in men. The questionnaire overestimated dairy products and vegetables in both men and women when compared with intakes derived from the diary, but underestimated cereal and meat intake in men. There were some consistent trends with age in food and nutrient intakes assessed by both methods, particularly in men. Correlation coefficients between dietary intake assessed from the diary and excretion of nitrogen and potassium in a single 24-h urine sample ranged from 0.36 to 0.47. Those comparing urine excretion and intake assessed from the FFQ were 0.09 to 0.26. The correlations between plasma vitamin C and dietary intake from the first FFQ, 24-h recall or diary were 0.28, 0.35 and 0.40.Conclusions:EPIC Norfolk is one of the largest epidemiological studies of nutrition in the UK and the largest on which plasma vitamin C has been obtained. Methods for obtaining food and nutrient intake are described in detail. The results shown here for food and nutrient intakes can be compared with results from other population studies utilising different methods of assessing dietary intake. The utility of different methods used in different settings within the main EPIC cohort is described. The FFQ is to be used particularly in pooled analyses of risk from diet in relation to cancer incidence within the larger European EPIC study, where measurement error is more likely to be overcome by large dietary heterogeneity on an international basis. Findings in the UK, where dietary variation between individuals is smaller and hence the need to use a more accurate individual method greater, will be derived from the 7-day diary information on a nested case–control basis. 24-h recalls can be used in the event that diary information should not be forthcoming from some eventual cases. Combinations of results utilising all dietary methods and biomarkers may also be possible.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Balqees Alawadhi ◽  
Rosalind Fallaize ◽  
Rodrigo Franco ◽  
Faustina Hwang ◽  
Julie Lovegrove

BACKGROUND The web-based EatWellQ8 food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) was developed as a dietary assessment tool for healthy adults in Kuwait. Validation against reliable instruments and an assessment of its reproducibility are required to ensure its accuracy in computing nutrient intake OBJECTIVE To assess the reproducibility and validity of the EatWellQ8 FFQ against a paper based (PFFQ) and a 4-day weighed food record (WFR). METHODS Reproducibility of the EatWellQ8 FFQ was assessed using test-retest methodology. Participants were required to complete the FFQ at two time points, 4 weeks apart. To assess validity of the EatWellQ8 FFQ, a subset of the participants were asked to complete a PFFQ or a 4-day WFR 1 week after administration of the EatWellQ8 FFQ. The level of agreement between nutrient and food group intakes estimated by repeated EatWellQ8 FFQ and the EatWellQ8 FFQ and the PFFQ and the 4-day WFR were evaluated using Bland-Altman methodology and classification into quartiles of daily intake. Crude unadjusted correlation coefficients were also calculated. RESULTS A total of 99 participants (65% female: 35% male) completed the study, 53 participated in the reproducibility study and the 4-day WFR validity study (mean age 37 years) and a further 46 participated in the PFFQ validity study (mean age 36 years). Crude unadjusted correlations for repeated EatWellQ8 FFQ ranged from (0.37-0.82) (P<0.01). Mean cross-classification into “exact agreement plus adjacent” was 88% for nutrient intakes, 86% for food groups, and Bland-Altman plots showed good agreement for energy-adjusted macronutrient intakes. Agreement between the EatWellQ8 FFQ and PFFQ varied, with crude unadjusted correlations ranging from (0.42-0.73) (P<0.05). Mean cross-classification into “exact agreement plus adjacent” was 84% for nutrient intake and 74% for food groups. Bland-Altman plots showed moderate agreement for both energy and energy-controlled nutrient intakes. Crude unadjusted correlations for the EatWellQ8 FFQ and the 4-day WFR ranged from (0.40-0.88) (P<0.01). Mean cross-classification into “exact agreement plus adjacent” was 85% for nutrient intake and 83% for food groups. Bland-Altman plots showed moderate agreement for energy-adjusted macronutrient intakes. CONCLUSIONS Results indicate that the web-based EatWellQ8 FFQ is reproducible for assessing nutrient and food group intake and has moderate agreement compared to a PFFQ and a 4-day WFR for measuring energy and nutrient intakes.


2005 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 135-145 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuko Tokudome ◽  
Chiho Goto ◽  
Nahomi Imaeda ◽  
Takako Hasegawa ◽  
Rieko Kato ◽  
...  

Nutrients ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 619 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cecilia Ho Yan Sam ◽  
Paula Skidmore ◽  
Sheila Skeaff ◽  
Sherly Parackal ◽  
Clare Wall ◽  
...  

There is no recent validated short food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) for use in New Zealand (NZ) adults. This study aimed to evaluate the relative validity and reproducibility of a short FFQ in free-living NZ adults aged 30–59 years. A 57-item, semi-quantitative FFQ was developed and pre-tested. During a 12-month study period the FFQ was administrated twice with a 9-month interval between administrations. Four two-day diet records were collected at months 0, 3, 6, and 9 and a blood sample was taken at month 9. Spearman correlations were used to evaluate the validity of the FFQ with the eight-day diet records and selected biomarkers. Cross-classification analysis and the Bland–Altman method were used to assess the agreement between the FFQ and the diet record. Reproducibility over nine months was assessed using intra-class correlations. A total of 132 males and females completed both FFQs, the eight-day diet record, and provided a blood sample. The highest energy-adjusted correlation coefficients were observed for alcohol (0.81), cholesterol (0.61), and carbohydrate (0.61), with the lowest for sodium (0.29), thiamin (0.33), and niacin equivalents (0.34). More than three quarters of the participants were correctly classified into the same or adjacent quartile for most nutrients, with a low proportion of participants being grossly misclassified (<10%). For most nutrients, the limits of agreement from the Bland–Altman analyses were between 50% and 250%. A positive correlation was observed between dietary intakes and plasma biomarkers for all selected nutrients. The FFQ showed moderate to good reproducibility, with almost all reliability coefficients ranging from 0.60 to 0.80. This short FFQ was shown to validly and reliably rank individuals by their habitual intake of most major nutrients, indicating that the FFQ will offer a time-efficient way to assess the nutrient intake of NZ adults in future research.


2020 ◽  
Vol 77 (2) ◽  
pp. 253-259 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathryn L. Beck ◽  
Zara L. Houston ◽  
Sarah A. McNaughton ◽  
Rozanne Kruger

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