American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol 37, 139-146, Copyright © 1983 by The American Society for Clinical Nutrition, Inc

ORIGINAL RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS

Food intake measurement: problems and approaches

KS Todd, M Hudes and DH Calloway

Sources of variance in dietary intake records were measured and compared. Eighteen graduate students recorded self-selected food intakes during a 30-day study. Subjects were divided into two groups and on alternating 5 consecutive day periods, one group weighted all food consumed and recorded it on tape recorders while the other group recorded estimated intake in small notebooks. An average of two, 24-h dietary recalls was also obtained from each subject and compared to previously estimated intake. The major contributions to total variance were within subject and between subject variance. There was no difference in the mean protein and energy intake recorded by weighing when compared to that recorded in household measures, but there was less variability in the records obtained by weighting intake. The 95% confidence limits were calculated both for the group's and an individual's intake for each method, these demonstrated that 1-day dietary record gave a reasonable estimate (within 15%) of the usual intake of the group. However, the 1-day record, regardless of which method used, gave a meaningless estimate of an individual's usual diet. The protein/energy ratios and the coefficient of interindividual variation are also reported.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				V. S. Tarasuk and A.-S. Brooker Interpreting Epidemiologic Studies of Diet-Disease Relationships J. Nutr., September 1, 1997; 127(9): 1847 - 1852. [Abstract] [Full Text]

				S. J. Mitchell and J. E. Leklem Food Intake Measurement: University Dining Halls As An Extension Of The Laboratory Family and Consumer Sciences Research Journal, December 1, 1985; 14(2): 226 - 235. [Abstract]