HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Purchase Article View Shopping Cart Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Horner, N. K Articles by Prentice, R. L Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Horner, N. K Articles by Prentice, R. L Agricola Articles by Horner, N. K Articles by Prentice, R. L

Participant characteristics associated with errors in self-reported energy intake from the Women’s Health Initiative food-frequency questionnaire^1,2,3

¹ From the Cancer Prevention Research Program, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (NKH, REP, MLN, JWL, SAB, and RLP), and the Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington (REP, JWL, and SAB), Seattle.

Background: Errors in self-reported dietary intake threaten inferences from studies relying on instruments such as food-frequency questionnaires (FFQs), food records, and food recalls.

Objective: The objective was to quantify the magnitude, direction, and predictors of errors associated with energy intakes estimated from the Women’s Health Initiative FFQ.

Design: Postmenopausal women (n = 102) provided data on sociodemographic and psychosocial characteristics that relate to errors in self-reported energy intake. Energy intake was objectively estimated as total energy expenditure, physical activity expenditure, and the thermic effect of food (10% addition to other components of total energy expenditure).

Results: Participants underreported energy intake on the FFQ by 20.8%; this error trended upward with younger age (P = 0.07) and social desirability (P = 0.09) but was not associated with body mass index (P = 0.95). The correlation coefficient between reported energy intake and total energy expenditure was 0.24; correlations were higher among women with less education, higher body mass index, and greater fat-free mass, social desirability, and dissatisfaction with perceived body size (all P < 0.10).

Conclusions: Energy intake is generally underreported, and both the magnitude of the error and the association of the self-reporting with objectively estimated intake appear to vary by participant characteristics. Studies relying on self-reported intake should include objective measures of energy expenditure in a subset of participants to identify person-specific bias within the study population for the dietary self-reporting tool; these data should be used to calibrate the self-reported data as an integral aspect of diet and disease association studies.

Key Words: Dietary records • systematic bias • dietary measurement error • energy expenditure • postmenopausal women • Women’s Health Initiative

This article has been cited by other articles:

				M. L. Neuhouser, L. Tinker, P. A. Shaw, D. Schoeller, S. A. Bingham, L. V. Horn, S. A. A. Beresford, B. Caan, C. Thomson, S. Satterfield, et al. Use of Recovery Biomarkers to Calibrate Nutrient Consumption Self-Reports in the Women's Health Initiative Am. J. Epidemiol., May 15, 2008; 167(10): 1247 - 1259. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				K. Watson, T. Baranowski, D. Thompson, R. Jago, J. Baranowski, and L. M. Klesges Innovative application of a multidimensional item response model in assessing the influence of social desirability on the pseudo-relationship between self-efficacy and behavior Health Educ. Res., December 1, 2006; 21(suppl_1): i85 - i97. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				J. Halkjaer, A. Tjonneland, B. L Thomsen, K. Overvad, and T. I. Sorensen Intake of macronutrients as predictors of 5-y changes in waist circumference. Am. J. Clinical Nutrition, October 1, 2006; 84(4): 789 - 797. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				C. A. Blanton, A. J. Moshfegh, D. J. Baer, and M. J. Kretsch The USDA Automated Multiple-Pass Method Accurately Estimates Group Total Energy and Nutrient Intake J. Nutr., October 1, 2006; 136(10): 2594 - 2599. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				K. E. Foster-Schubert, A. McTiernan, R. S. Frayo, R. S. Schwartz, K. B. Rajan, Y. Yasui, S. S. Tworoger, and D. E. Cummings Human Plasma Ghrelin Levels Increase during a One-Year Exercise Program J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., February 1, 2005; 90(2): 820 - 825. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				J. A Tooze, A. F Subar, F. E Thompson, R. Troiano, A. Schatzkin, and V. Kipnis Psychosocial predictors of energy underreporting in a large doubly labeled water study Am. J. Clinical Nutrition, May 1, 2004; 79(5): 795 - 804. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]