Validation Information: Diet History Interview
Jackson 1990
Comparison of diet history interview and self completed questionnaire in assessment of diet in an elderly population
Study objective: The aim of the study was to determine the reliability of a diet history interview with a short self completed questionnaire ofa basic design used in other studies in the United Kingdom.
Design: The study used a cohort of elderly people randomly divided into two groups after stratification for sex. Members of one group completed the questionnaire first and were interviewed later; the procedure was reversed for the other group.
Setting: Participants were drawn from registers of two general practitioners at a Nottingham health centre.
Participants: All non-Asian men aged 65-74 years and women aged 59-65 years registered with the practices were identified (n = 152); 20 could not be traced and two were too ill, leaving 130 possible participants. Of these, 80 took part in the study.
Measurements and results: Ranking of subjects in terms ofestimated fat, fibre, and calcium intakes was compared in the history interview and in the self completed questionnaire. Agreement in tertile ranking was 58% for fibre, 53% for fat, and 49% for calcium. Corresponding correlation coefficients for estimated nutrient intakes were 0.49, 0.45, and 0.41 respectively. Thedifferences in nutrient intakes estimated by the two methods were not affected by age, sex, marital status, or smoking patterns. Subjects in the group asked to complete the questionnaire before being interviewed showed greater percentage concordance for tertile ranking, but this reached significance only for fat intake.
Conclusions: The two methods provide estimates of intakes similar to those found in other studies in the United Kingdom, and the agreement between them in terms of tertile ranking is also similar to previous studies. The incidence of gross misclassification was low.
Total number of nutrients validated: 3
Not all of the nutrients validated in the validation studies are included in the table below, as statistical data was only selected to be displayed for a number of nutrients, this included:
- Energy
- Fat
- Saturated Fat
- Mono-unsaturated Fat
- Poly-unsaturated Fat
- Carbohydrates
- Protein
- Sugar
- Non‐starch polysaccharides(NSP)
- Sodium
- Calcium
- Iron
- Zinc
- Retinol
- Folate
- Folic Acid
- Vitamin B12
- Vitamin C
- Fruit & Vegetables
- Urinary Nitrogen
To find information on the other validated nutrients please read the validation study.
- Macronutrients: 2
- Micronutrients: 1
| Comparator | Lifestage | Sex | Nutrient Measured | Mean Difference | Standard Deviation | Correlation Coefficient | Cohen's Kappa Coefficient | Percentage Agreement | Percentage Agreement Categories | Lower Limits of Agreement | Upper Limits of Agreement |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Food Frequency Questionnaire | Elderly | Both | Fat (g) | 9 (Median) | 0.45 (S) | 0.40 (w) | 52.5 | 3 | |||
| Calcium (mg) | -16 | 226.5 | 0.42 (P) | 0.42 (w) | 48.8 | 3 | -468.9 | 436.9 |
Some results have been calculated using statistical techniques based on the published data.
For further information on statistical terms click on Statistical tests used in validation studies
All correlations coefficients in the table are unadjusted unless stated otherwise. For adjusted correlation coefficients and other statistical methods used in the study e.g. paired t-tests, please read the validation articles.
- # Adjusted
- † Energy adjusted.
- ‡ For loge-transformed, energy-adjusted nutrient intakes.
- ^ Adjacent included.
- ᵟ Participants provided identical responses.
- (w) = Weighted.
Jackson N, Little J, Wilson AD. Comparison of diet history interview and self completed questionnaire in assessment of diet in an elderly population. Journal of epidemiology and community health. 1990 Jun 1;44(2):162-9.