Relative validity of a non-quantitative 33-item dietary screener with a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire among young adults

Abstract

The objective of the study was to assess the concordance and ranking ability of a non-quantitative 33-item dietary screener developed to assess the diet of young adults in Norway, ‘MyFoodMonth 1.1’, compared to a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). Data were collected in a cross-sectional dietary survey evaluating the diets of students at the University of Agder, in southern Norway. The students were asked to complete both a dietary screener and an FFQ. Data collection was carried out from September to December 2020. Participants were first-year university students aged ≥18 years familiar with Scandinavian language. Almost half of the eligible sample (n 344) was excluded due to not completing the FFQ, compared to 1⋅7 % not completing the dietary screener, resulting in 172 (66 % female) participants with a median age of 21 years. For most items of the dietary screener (n 27/33, 82 %), all aspects of diet quality and components of the Diet Quality Score showed moderate-to-strong concordance with the FFQ evaluated using Kendall's tau-b analyses (t > 0⋅31), supported by visual inspection of box and whisker plots and descriptive ranking ability in a cross-tabulation. There was little evidence to suggest that concordance was dependent on sex. The concordance and ranking ability of ‘MyFoodMonth 1.1’ is considered satisfactory compared to a semi-quantitative FFQ. This rapid dietary assessment instrument presents a valuable addition to traditional instruments and a possible solution to recruit hard-to-reach parts of the population.

Developmental origins of health and disease knowledge is associated with diet quality in preconception young adult men and women

“…The inclusion of male participants is in line with the relatively new extension of DOHaD, Paternal Origins of Health and Disease (POHaD), 20 and helps filling the research gap which calls for epidemiological studies exploring the influences of the paternal environment on the health of the offspring. Other strengths include the use of a validated dietary screener, shown to satisfactorily rank high and low intakes compared to a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire, 24 and the use of a DOHaD KNOWLEDGE scale that has high internal consistency (Cronbach’s α =.82), indicating that the statements that make up the scale measure the same mental construct. 17 However, the DOHaD KNOWLEDGE scale has not been validated and has an imbalance of positively and negatively phrased statements, as pointed out by McKerracher et al .…”

“…Aspects of diet quality and a DQS were derived from MyFoodMonth 1.1, a non-quantitative dietary screener. 24 The dietary screener assesses the intake of 33 food items during the previous month (30 days) using ten frequency categories ranging from “never” to “6 or more per day”. The dietary screener has previously been validated in a Norwegian sample of young adults and showed satisfactorily ranking abilities, compared to a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire.…”

“…The dietary screener has previously been validated in a Norwegian sample of young adults and showed satisfactorily ranking abilities, compared to a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire. 24…”

“…The DQS assign points using a weighted scoring from 0 to 10 points relative to health benefits associated with the frequency of intake for the respective food items, that is, a higher score indicates a healthier diet, previously described in detail. 24 The total DQS ranged from 0 points, indicating low diet quality, to 100 points, indicating high diet quality.…”