Hostname: page-component-89b8bd64d-x2lbr Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2026-05-09T14:04:24.601Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Validity of a food-frequency questionnaire for elderly men in southeast China

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2007

Le Jian ,
Colin W Binns  and
Andy H Lee
Le Jian*
Affiliation:
School of Public Health, Curtin University of Technology, GPO Box U 1987, Perth, Western Australia 6845, Australia
Colin W Binns
Affiliation:
School of Public Health, Curtin University of Technology, GPO Box U 1987, Perth, Western Australia 6845, Australia
Andy H Lee
Affiliation:
School of Public Health, Curtin University of Technology, GPO Box U 1987, Perth, Western Australia 6845, Australia
*
*corresponding author: Email l.jian@exchange.curtin.edu.au
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the 'Save PDF' action button.
Objective

To investigate the internal validity of a food-frequency questionnaire (FFQ) developed for a case–control study of prostate cancer in southeast China.

Design

A comprehensive questionnaire comprising a quantitative FFQ and a short food habit questionnaire (SFHQ) was developed and modified from previous cancer and nutritional studies. The Goldberg formula (ratio of energy intake (EI) to basal metabolic rate (BMR), EI/BMR) was used to assess the validity of the FFQ by making comparisons with physical activity levels. Physical activity levels were measured by the estimated total metabolic equivalents (MET) and the ratio of energy expenditure (EE) to BMR (EE/BMR). Correlation analyses were undertaken to compare the SFHQ variables with those of the quantitative FFQ.

Setting

Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China.

Subjects

A total of 404 men over 45 years old with or without prostate cancer were recruited from eight hospitals.

Results

The partial correlation coefficients, controlling for age and family history of prostate cancer, were moderate to high (P < 0.05) for preserved foods intake, fat consumption and tea drinking variables between the SFHQ and the quantitative FFQ. The average EI/BMR was 1.72, with 76% of subjects exceeding the Goldberg cut-off value of 1.35. Apart from weight, BMI, EE/BMR and MET, there were no significant differences in characteristics between low (< 1.35) and normal EI/BMR groups.

Conclusions

The FFQ is demonstrated to be a valid instrument to measure energy and food intake for elderly men in southeast China.

Keywords

Food-frequency questionnaireValidityReproducibilityEnergy intakeEnergy expenditurePhysical activity levelMetabolic equivalentsChina

Information

Type
Research Article
Information
Public Health Nutrition , Volume 9 , Issue 7 , October 2006 , pp. 928 - 933
Copyright
Copyright © The Authors 2006

References

1Willett, W. Nutritional Epidemiology. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
2Greenland, S. Concepts of validity in epidemiological research. In: Detels, R, Holland, WW, McEwen, J, Omenn, GS, eds. Oxford Textbook of Public Health. New York: Oxford University Press, 1997; 417–1016.Google Scholar
3Livingstone, MB, Black, AE. Markers of the validity of reported energy intake. Journal of Nutrition 2003; 133(Suppl. 3): 895S–920S.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
4Navarro, A, Osella, AR, Guerra, V, Munoz, SE, Lantieri, MJ, Eynard, AR. Reproducibility and validity of a food-frequency questionnaire in assessing dietary intakes and food habits in epidemiological cancer studies in Argentina. Journal of Experimental & Clinical Cancer Research 2001; 20(3): 365–70.Google ScholarPubMed
5Neuhouser, ML, Kristal, AR, McLerran, D, Patterson, RE, Atkinson, J. Validity of short food frequency questionnaires used in cancer chemoprevention trials: results from the prostate cancer prevention trial. Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention 1999; 8(8): 721–5Google ScholarPubMed
6Boeing, H, Bohlscheid-Thomas, S, Voss, S, Schneeweiss, S, Wahrendorf, J. The relative validity of vitamin intakes derived from a food frequency questionnaire compared to 24-hour recalls and biological measurements: results from the EPIC pilot study in Germany. European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition. International Journal of Epidemiology 1997; 26(Suppl. 1): S82–S90.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
7Potischman, N, Freudenheim, JL. Biomarkers of nutritional exposure and nutritional status: an overview. Journal of Nutrition 2003; 133(Suppl. 3): 873S–4S.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
8Bergmann, MM, Flagg, EW, Miracle-McMahill, HL, Boeing, H. Energy intake and net weight gain in pregnant women according to body mass index (BMI) status. International Journal of Obesity and Related Metabolic Disorders 1997; 21(11): 1010–7.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
9Bedard, D, Shatenstein, B, Nadon, S. Underreporting of energy intake from a self-administered food-frequency questionnaire completed by adults in Montreal. Public Health Nutrition 2004; 7(5): 675–81.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
10Goldberg, GR, Black, AE, Jebb, SA, Cole, TJ, Murgatroyd, PR, Coward, WA. Critical evaluation of energy intake data using fundamental principles of energy physiology: 1. Derivation of cut-off limits to identify under-recording. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 1991; 45(12): 569–81.Google ScholarPubMed
11Martinez-Gonzalez, MA, Martinez, JA, Hu, FB, Gibney, MJ, Kearney, J. Physical inactivity, sedentary lifestyle and obesity in the European Union. International Journal of Obesity and Related Metabolic Disorders 1999; 23(11): 1192–201.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
12Hagfors, L, Westerterp, K, Skoldstam, L, Johansson, G. Validity of reported energy expenditure and reported intake of energy, protein, sodium and potassium in rheumatoid arthritis patients in a dietary intervention study. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2005; 59(2): 238–45.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
13Ainsworth, BE, Haskell, WL, Leon, AS, Jacobs, DR Jr, Montoye, HJ, Sallis, JF. Compendium of physical activities: classification of energy costs of human physical activities. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise 1993; 25(1): 71–80.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
14Ainsworth, BE, Haskell, WL, Whitt, MC, Irwin, ML, Swartz, AM, Strath, SJ. Compendium of physical activities: an update of activity codes and MET intensities. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise 2000; 32(9 Suppl.): S498–S504.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
15Zhang, M, Yang, ZY, Binns, CW, Lee, AH. Diet and ovarian cancer risk: a case–control study in China. British Journal of Cancer 2002; 86(5): 712–7.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
16Ji, BT, Chow, WH, Yang, G, McLaughlin, JK, Zheng, W, Shu, XO. Dietary habits and stomach cancer in Shanghai, China. International Journal of Cancer 1998; 76(5): 659–64.3.0.CO;2-P>CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
17Goodman, MT, Hankin, JH, Wilkens, LR, Lyu, LC, McDuffie, K, Liu, LQ. Diet, body size, physical activity, and the risk of endometrial cancer. Cancer Research 1997; 57(22): 5077–85.Google ScholarPubMed
18Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). National Health Survey 1995: Summary of Results. Canberra: ABS, 1995.Google Scholar
19National Information Services (NIS). Food Questionnaire. Washington, DC: NIS, 1992.Google Scholar
20Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine, Institute of Nutrition and Food Hygiene. Food Components Table (National Representative Values), 1st ed. Beijing: People's Health Press, 2000.Google Scholar
21Food and Agriculture Organization/World Health Organization (WHO)/United Nations University. Energy and Protein Requirements. Report of a Joint Expert Consultation. WHO Technical Report Series No. 724. Geneva: WHO, 1985.Google Scholar
22James, W, Schofield, E. Human Energy Requirements – A Manual for Planners and Nutritionists. Oxford: Oxiford University Press, 1990.Google Scholar
23Cook, T, Rutishauser, I, Seelig, M, Australasian Food and Nutrition Monitoring Unit. Comparable Data on Food and Nutrient Intake and Physical Measurements from the 1983, 1985 and 1995 National Nutrition Surveys. Canberra: Commonwealth of Australia, 2001; 1–149.Google Scholar
24Goldberg, GR, Prentice, AM, Coward, WA, Davies, HL, Murgatroyd, PR, Sawyer, MB. Longitudinal assessment of the components of energy balance in well-nourished lactating women. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 1991; 54(5): 788–98.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed