Use of electronic visual recording to aid assessment of dietary intake of Australian Aboriginal children living in remote communities

Abstract

T o evaluate interventions, assess potential improvements and determine long-term progress in dietary change, it is essential to have an accurate method to measure food consumption. Electronic visual recording such as digital photography has been shown to aid estimation of cafeteria consumption among college students with high accuracy when compared with food intake weight (r=0.92) 1 and among preschoolers when compared with weighed intake (r=0.96 p<0.001). 2 Recording intake over three days has been found to provide an accurate average of daily dietary intake among children. 3 It has been suggested that dietary intake be collected in remote communities for at least 3 -4 days because variation in dietary intake is likely to be high among populations where food expenditure varies with the pay cycle. 4 This pilot study aimed to assess the feasibility of using electronic visual recording in combination with food records to evaluate individual level dietary intake over a four-day period in Aboriginal infants and children. MethodologyThe study was conducted in a remote Aboriginal community with a population of about 2,300 people, 5 where household food preparation facilities and food storage were limited. 6 All people with an interest in nutrition were eligible. Participants were recruited to attend classroom-based incommunity training for two weeks. The first component of the training was delivered over one week and aimed to build the research skills of participants. A practical exercise involved each participant collecting dietary intake from a child related to them and younger than 10 years of age over four consecutive days, including two week days, Saturday and Sunday. The foods and drinks were estimated using household measuring utensils and electronically recorded by mothers before and after consumption using a digital camera or an Apple iPod Touch angled at 45 degrees and held one armlength away from the object. The research team comprised three people (one project officer, one dietitian and one communitybased worker). One or two research team members who had a close relationship with the community visited participating households daily to: i) support the mothers to complete food records; ii) provide batteries or to recharge the iPod if necessary; iii) download the photos and movies onto a laptop and; iv) clarify any doubts. The second component of the classroom-based training aimed to provide information on nutritional needs. This was delivered over two days after the practical activity of collecting dietary intake data. The participants were given a statement of attainment for the nutrition unit at certificate IV level.At least two of the research team members, including a dietitian, analysed all electronic photographs and videos regarding brand, flavour, serving sizes, and time and date of AbstractObjective: To assess the feasibility of using electronic visual recording in combination with food records to evaluate dietary intake in Aboriginal infants and children.Methods: All foods and drinks consumed by t...

Traditional food availability and consumption in remote Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory, Australia

“…Data of the nutrient profiles of many traditional foods exists and continues to be built on in Australia. Through a strong collaboration with Aboriginal people, methods for conducting individual dietary assessment of traditional food intake could be developed, which could include methodologies such as repeated 24‐hour recall, visual recall 40 and food frequency questionnaires, resulting in validated tools for ongoing use in this context. Our limited data, combined with national and international evidence suggest that priorities should include understanding differences across ages, gender, education and employment status and across remote, regional and urban areas in Australia.…”

Anaemia Health Literacy of Community Members and Health Practitioners Knowledge of Best Practice Guidelines in a Remote Australian Aboriginal Community

“…Despite a 'good' level of community anaemia knowledge, there was no evidence that this knowledge translated into the dietary intake of children who had simultaneously participated in a 4-day food diary collection published previously. [20] It is possible that food insecurity and knowledge [26] of how often iron rich foods should be consumed were contributing factors to the nutrient deficient diets of children that were not investigated in this study. With the increasing availability and affordability of healthy food options in local community stores a randomized controlled trial is currently being implemented to determine if a reduction in healthy food prices influences dietary behaviour changes.…”

“…The team had extensive experience in conducting research in Aboriginal communities and their employer, Menzies School of Health Research, has over 30 years' experience working with Aboriginal people to improve health outcomes and a long standing track record in working with and building the capacity of community based researchers. [18][19][20] …”

“…Community members who had participated in the trial of using an electronic food diary [20] and had provided written informed consent to be interviewed or be part of a focus group, were approached to confirm their participation and that of other household members. Health practitioners were approached at their place of work and were interviewed on the day they provided written informed consent.…”

The Relative Validity of the Menzies Remote Short-Item Dietary Assessment Tool (MRSDAT) in Aboriginal Australian Children Aged 6–36 Months

“…The small body of literature that is available highlights that infant and toddler diets in RACs are suboptimal and calls for further research [ 3 , 8 ]. Contributing to this gap in the literature are the complexities faced in collecting dietary intake data and assessing diet quality in a RAC population [ 3 , 9 ].…”