Validity of a Semi-Quantitative Food Frequency Questionnaire for Collegiate Athletes

Abstract

BackgroundFood frequency questionnaires (FFQs) have been developed and validated for various populations. To our knowledge, however, no FFQ has been validated for young athletes. Here, we investigated whether an FFQ that was developed and validated to estimate dietary intake in middle-aged persons was also valid for estimating that in young athletes.MethodsWe applied an FFQ that had been developed for the Japan Public Health Center-based Prospective Cohort Study with modification to the duration of recollection. A total of 156 participants (92 males) completed the FFQ and a 3-day non-consecutive 24-hour dietary recall (24hDR). Validity of the mean estimates was evaluated by calculating the percentage differences between the 24hDR and FFQ. Ranking estimation was validated using Spearman’s correlation coefficient (CC), and the degree of miscategorization was determined by joint classification.ResultsThe FFQ underestimated energy intake by approximately 10% for both males and females. For 35 nutrients, the median (range) deattenuated CC was 0.30 (0.10 to 0.57) for males and 0.32 (−0.08 to 0.62) for females. For 19 food groups, the median (range) deattenuated CC was 0.32 (0.17 to 0.72) for males and 0.34 (−0.11 to 0.58) for females. For both nutrient and food group intakes, cross-classification analysis indicated extreme miscategorization rates of 3% to 5%.ConclusionsAn FFQ developed and validated for middle-aged persons had comparable validity among young athletes. This FFQ might be useful for assessing habitual dietary intake in collegiate athletes, especially for calcium, vitamin C, vegetables, fruits, and milk and dairy products.

Development of a Food Frequency Questionnaire for Brazilian athletes

“…Numerous FFQs have been developed and validated for the Brazilian population; however, none of them for athletes. To the best of our knowledge, only two FFQs have been validated for athletes . The first study was conducted with rowing athletes from New Zealand, focusing on antioxidant intake and the second was conducted with Japanese athletes (soccer, basketball, track and field, handball, tennis, judo and volleyball).…”

“…23,25 The first study was conducted with rowing athletes from New Zealand, focusing on antioxidant intake 25 and the second was conducted with Japanese athletes (soccer, basketball, track and field, handball, tennis, judo and volleyball). This FFQ evaluated a broad range of nutrients, however the authors did not include dietary supplements in the food list 23 which may decrease its accuracy. 23 Herein we highlighted that supplements are an important contributor to the total nutrient intake variance among athletes.…”

“…This FFQ evaluated a broad range of nutrients, however the authors did not include dietary supplements in the food list 23 which may decrease its accuracy. 23 Herein we highlighted that supplements are an important contributor to the total nutrient intake variance among athletes.…”

Can the sedentary behavior of young male basketball and volleyball players impact the bone mass and bone geometry?

“…Information on all foods and beverages were obtained by a nutritionist through a 24-hour food recall [28] and a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire [29,30]. The semi-quantitative FFQ, with usual portions of foods rich in calcium, was used only for the estimation of calcium intake, due to its important role in bone health.…”

Time-of-Day of Energy Intake Is Associated with Body Fat Percentage in Japanese Female University Rhythmic Gymnasts and Non-Athlete Students

“…Participants attended a 24hDR interview for 3 d at about weekly intervals (2 weekdays and 1 weekend day) in which they were asked to list all foods and drinks they consumed, and their daily activities for 24 h from 3:00 on the day before the interview until 3:00 on the day of the interview. The interviews were randomly conducted by well-trained interviewers according to the previously described multiple-pass interviewing method (14,15). Daily energy intakes based on the Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan (5th revised and enlarged edition) (16) were calculated using nutrient calculation software (Excel Eiyoukun, Version 7.0; Kenpakusha, Tokyo, Japan).…”