Food Frequency Questionnaires BY: Noura Al-Ghilan, Ohood Al-Mubarak, Sara Al-Babtain

Over the past two decades, food frequency questionnaires have become a well-accepted method for quantitative assessment usual nutrient intake. Many question remain about the accuracy & appropriateness of FFQ's especially when more precise estimates of actual food intake are desired. HISTORY:

CONT, There are, however, many practical advantages to FFQ's that motivate their use in a number of specific research applications. Research to improve the validity of FFQ's & modify their characteristics for specific research questions is well warranted.

Food Frequency Questionnaires Assess energy and/or nutrient intake by determining how frequently a person consumes a limited number of foods that are major sources of nutrients or of a particular dietary component in question.

CONT, The questionnaires consist of a list of approximately 150 or fewer individual foods or food groups that are important contributors to the population's intake of energy and nutrients. Respondents indicate how many times a day, week, month, or year that they usually consume the foods.

There are three epidemiological study types for which FFQ's are necessary: In case-control study. In very large longitudinal study. Large intervention study.

Sample Food Frequency Questionnaire for Adolescents Food Frequency Form. How often do you eat the following foods? (Put an “X” on the line.) Seldom Never times/weekOnce/day 2- 3 once/dayMore than Milk Cheese, yogurt Meat, fish, poultry eggs Peanut butter, nuts Dry beans, peas, tofu, soy Bread Coffee, tea Fast food

Some questionnaires, known as "screeners" have been designed to assess intake of individual nutrients or food components, such as vitamin A, fat, or calcium, for studies investigating the relationships between diet and such conditions as cancer and cardiovascular disease.

13-items screening questionnaire for fat intake

LimitationsStrengths May not represent usual foods or portion sizes chosen by respondents Can be self-administered Intake data can be compromised when multiple foods are grouped with single listings Machine readable Modest demand on respondents Depends on ability of subject to describe dietRelatively inexpensive for large sample sizes May be more representative of usual intake than a few days of diet records Design can be based on large population data. Strength and Limitations of Food Frequency Questionnaires: