Methodology
Tools and methods
Dietary Assessment Instrument Inventory
In april 2021, we sent out a questionnaire to the NEON list to create an inventory of available dietary assessment instruments for the Nordic countries. We received 12 responses. In Sweden, nine instruments are ready to use (of which eight are validated) and three are still in development. The majority are food frequency questionnaires (n=5), but other types of (hybrid) instruments are available. The instruments are suitable for 'the general population', but also instruments suitable for the clinical setting were registered. You can download the full results (excel spreadsheet) via this link: https://www.oru.se/english/research/research-projects/rp/?rdb=p2371
The link to the questionniare to register your dietary assessment instrument will remain open (available via above link). We aim to update the inventory on a yearly basis.
We hope this inventory will help with resource management and that it will be a source of information for those involved in nutritional/clinical research in the Nordic countries!
The DAPA Measurement Toolkit is a free web-based resource to assist researchers, public health professionals, and others to identify and use methods for the assessment of diet, anthropometry, and physical activity. The toolkit is hosted by MRC Epidemiology Unit/Centre for Diet and Activity Research (CEDAR), Cambridge, U.K.
NCI’s tool for guidance regarding diet assessment method and diet data analysis from NCI. The purpose of the Primer is to help researchers determine the best way to assess diet for any study in which estimates of group intakes are required. This can be a challenge because no perfect measure of diet exists. Understanding the key features of self-report instruments and the benefits and drawbacks of potential approaches to collecting and analyzing dietary intake data can help you make the best choices given your research question and resources.
ASA24, National Cancer Institute (NCI), USA
The Automated Self-administered 24-hour Recall (ASA24) system is a Web-based tool, developed by investigators at NCI that enables automated self-administered 24-hour recalls. Extensive evidence has demonstrated that 24-hour dietary recalls provide the highest-quality, least biased dietary data. Traditional 24-hour recalls, however, are expensive and impractical for large-scale research because they rely on trained interviewers and multiple administrations to estimate usual intakes. As a result, researchers often make use of food frequency questionnaires, which are less expensive but contain substantial error. The Web-based tool was created to address this challenge.
NCI-webinar
A series of lectures (broadcasted via internet) during the fall of 2010 from the National Cancer Institute on important issues related to dietary assessment and measurement errors. These lectures including the slides are currently available via the NCI web-site.
RiksmatenFlex
RiksmatenFlex is the web-based dietary assessment method used in the latest national dietary survey – Riksmaten 2016-17. A validation study is published in J Med Internet Res PMC6914230
For further information please contact Datauttag@slv.se
Matvanekollen - testa ditt sätt
This is a short web-based test for those who want feedback on their dietary habits. it is also a tool for health professionals who want to discuss dietary habits with their patients.
The Swedish food composition database provides information on the nutritional composition of more than 2000 foods and dishes. The food information is continiously updated. To achieve this, analytical projectsare carried out and details of the projects are published in reports. The food composition database is a free on-line resource. Please cite the source if you use the data.
More resources
- Demographic and Health Surveys (information, data sets)
- Dietary Assessment Calibration/Validation Register
- Good Epidemiological practice
- Institute for Health metrics and Evaluation (Global Burden of Disease)
- National Library of Medicine/PUBMED
