Journal Article

reliability of a food frequency questionnaire for use among adolescents

Oddy, W.H, de Klerk, N.H, O'Sullivan, T.A, Beilin, L.J, Ambrosini, G.L

2009

Overview

Background: Accurate measurement of dietary intake is essential for understanding the long-term effects of adolescent diet on chronic disease risk. However, adolescents may have limited food knowledge and ability to quantify portion sizes and recall dietary intake. Therefore, food frequency questionnaires (FFQs) deemed appropriate for use among adults may not be suitable for adolescents. Objectives: To evaluate an FFQ in comparison with a 3-day food record (FR) in 14-year olds participating in a population-based cohort study in Western Australia. Methods: Nutrient intakes estimated by a semi-quantitative FFQ were compared with those from a 3-day FR using Bland & Altman limits of agreement (LOA), tertile classifications and Pearson's correlation coefficients. Results: A total of 785 adolescents provided data from both dietary methods. Mean agreement between the FR and FFQ ranged from 73 (starch) to 161% (vitamin C). The LOA ranged from 27 (retinol) to 976% (carotene), with most nutrients being overestimated by the FFQ. For most nutrients, agreement between the two methods varied significantly with the magnitude of intake. Pearson's r ranged from 0.11 (polyunsaturated fats) to 0.52 (riboflavin). The FFQ classified 80 to 90% of subjects' nutrient intakes into the same or adjacent tertile as their FR. Boys performed slightly better for all of these indices. Conclusions: Agreement between individual FFQ and FR nutrient intakes was less than ideal. However, the FFQ was able to correctly rank a reasonable proportion of adolescents.

• Publisher: Nature Publishing Group UK,Nature Publishing Group
• Subject: Adolescent / adolescent nutrition / Adolescents / Agreements / Ascorbic acid / Biological and medical sciences / boys / Carotene / Chronic illnesses / Clinical Nutrition / Cohort Studies / Correlation coefficient / Correlation coefficients / data collection / Diet / Diet - statistics & numerical data / Diet Records / diet study techniques / Diet Surveys / Dietary intake / Energy Intake / Energy Intake - physiology / Epidemiology / Evaluation / Feeding. Feeding behavior / Female / Follow-Up Studies / Food / Food and nutrition / food frequency questionnaires / Food habits / Food intake / food records / Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology / gender differences / girls / Health aspects / Health risks / Health surveys / Humans / Internal Medicine / Long-term effects / Male / Medical sciences / Medicine / Medicine & Public Health / Metabolic Diseases / Methods / nutrient intake / Nutrients / nutrition assessment / original-article / physiology / Population studies / Public Health / Questionnaires / Reliability / Reproducibility of Results / Riboflavin / Sensitivity and Specificity / Sex Distribution / Starch / statistics & numerical data / Surveys and Questionnaires / Surveys and Questionnaires - standards / Teenagers / Vertebrates: anatomy and physiology, studies on body, several organs or systems / Vitamin A / Western Australia / Youth