Anne Chinnock

Validation of an estimated food record

OBJECTIVE To validate an estimated food record (EFR), using a weighed food record (WFR) as the reference method, for the determination of food consumption and nutrient intakes in a group of Costa Rican adults. DESIGN For the WFR, all foods consumed by subjects during seven consecutive days were weighed and recorded by nutrition students. Two EFRs (a 4-day and a 3-day record) were recorded by subjects with the use of home measures and photographs to estimate amounts. SETTING Costa Rica. SUBJECTS Sixty adults: 30 men and 30 women; 30 living in urban and 30 in rural areas. RESULTS The EFR gave statistically significant lower average intake estimates for energy and 12 of the 22 nutrients examined. The correlation coefficients ranged from 0.68 (polyunsaturated fats) to 0.87 (calcium). The percentage of subjects classified into the same quartile ranged from 45.0% (polyunsaturated fats) to 68.3% (vitamin B12). For all nutrients except vitamin C, 0 or 1.7% were misclassified into extreme quartiles. For food group consumption, the EFR gave statistically significant lower estimates for six of the 17 groups and correlation coefficients ranged from 0.22 (fish) to 0.93 (beverages). Greater differences in estimates of mean energy and nutrient intakes were detected among subjects from rural areas, caused in part by a tendency to underestimate the amounts of rice and beans consumed. CONCLUSION Validation of the EFR using a WFR as the reference method gave results that compare favourably with those reported by other authors, and support the use of the EFR for dietary surveys among Costa Rican adults.

Validation of a diet history questionnaire for use with Costa Rican adults

OBJECTIVE To validate a diet history questionnaire (DHQ) using a weighed food record (WFR) as the standard method in the estimation of food consumption and nutrient intake in a group of adults. DESIGN WFR: all foods consumed by subjects during 7 consecutive days were weighed and recorded by nutrition students. Two DHQ interviews were carried out on days 1 (first diet history questionnaire, DHQ1) and 28 (second diet history questionnaire, DHQ2). SETTING Costa Rica. SUBJECTS Sixty adults: 30 men and 30 women; 30 living in urban and 30 in rural areas. RESULTS In comparison to the WFR, the DHQ1 gave statistically significant higher estimates of the mean intake of 19 nutrients for men and of three nutrients for women. The uncorrected correlation coefficients for nutrient intake according to both methods ranged from 0.40 to 0.83 for males and from 0.22 to 0.62 for females. Percentage of subjects classified in the same quartiles of nutrient intake according to each method ranged from 33.3% to 63.3% for males and from 23.3% to 53.3% for females. Misclassification in extreme quartiles ranged from 0% to 13.3% for both sexes. The mean food group consumption, according to the DHQ1, when compared with the WFR, gave statistically significant differences for three of the 18 food groups for men and for two groups in the case of women. The two applications of the DHQ gave similar results. CONCLUSION Validation of a DHQ using a WFR as the standard method gave results that compare favourably with those reported by other authors. This study found important differences in the response of men and women to the DHQ: among men, the estimates of mean nutrient intake from DHQ1 were significantly greater than those of the WFR, while in the case of women, the mean nutrient intake estimates from both methods were not significantly different. There was a higher degree of correlation between the DHQ1 and the WFR mean nutrient intakes among men than among women. The DHQ showed good reproducibility.

Design, development and validation of a mobile application for goal setting and self-monitoring of dietary behaviors

The potential of mobile technologies are being used increasingly has not been fully exploited in relation to health research. There are Application (app) stores have thousands of health-related apps in the market, but generally, what is available publicly has not been fully evaluated by experts. This paper presents a case study where Human-Computer Interaction techniques and agile methodologies were applied in the design, development and validation of a health system in an interdisciplinary project. The system consisted of a mobile software platform that includes a nutrition mobile application for dietary self-monitoring based on behavioral change techniques. The essential background on behavioral change is provided. The application was designed using contextual design and other DCU methodologies. The system architecture and the main features of the end user mobile application are shown. The prototype was evaluated by nutrition domain experts and the preliminary results suggest that the application can improve the nutrition care process by facilitating a more effective communication between nutritionists and patients.