Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Validity of a Food Frequency Questionnaire in Assessing Nutrient Intakes of Low-Income Pregnant Women

  • Note
  • Published:
Maternal and Child Health Journal Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Objective: In 1989, a validation study of eight nutrients was performed on a modified food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) specifically designed for low-income pregnant women. The purpose of this study was to broaden the scope of the previous study by assessing the validity of the FFQ for 17 additional nutrients. Methods: The Pregnancy Food Frequency Questionnaire (PFFQ) was administered to a sample of 295 low-income, pregnant women aged 14–43 years living in Massachusetts. A randomly selected subsample of 101 women who provided at least one diet recall and reported intake of less than 4,500 calories were included in this analysis. Results: Mean intake of 25 nutrients as assessed by one administration of the PFFQ and up to three diet recalls collected over 1 month were similar. Unadjusted correlation coefficients between nutrient intake measured by diet recalls and the questionnaire ranged from .28 (carotene) to .61 (folate). After adjusting for energy intake the correlations ranged from .03 (B12) to .46 (folate). The correlations corrected for day-to-day variation were higher, ranging from .07 (B12) to .90 (zinc). The mean correlation was .47 and there were 54% over .40. Conclusions: A food frequency questionnaire for English-speaking, low-income, pregnant women can provide maternal and child health practitioners and researchers a valid estimate of diet across a wide range of nutrients.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

REFERENCES

  1. Basch C. The reproducibility of data from a food frequency questionnaire among low-income Latina mothers and their children. Am J Public Health 1994;84:861–4.

    Google Scholar 

  2. Brown J, Buzzard M, Jacobs D, Hannan P, Kushi L, Barosso G, Schmid L. A food frequency questionnaire can detect pregnancy-related changes in diet. J Am Diet Assoc 1996;96:262–6.

    Google Scholar 

  3. Kristal A, Ziding F, Coates R, Oberman A, George V. Associations of race/ethnicity, education, and dietary intervention with the validity and reliability of a food frequency questionnaire. Am J Epidemiol 1997;146:856–69.

    Google Scholar 

  4. Suitor CJ, Gardner J, Willett WC. A comparison of food frequency and diet recall methods in studies of nutrient intake of low-income pregnant women. J Am Diet Assoc 1989;89:1786–94.

    Google Scholar 

  5. WIC dietary assessment validation study. Final report. Washington, DC: USDA, 1994.

  6. Willett W, Sampson L, Stampfer M, et al. Reproducibility and validity of a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire. Am J Epidemiol 1985;122:51–65.

    Google Scholar 

  7. Rimm E, Giovannucci E, Stampfer M, Colditz G, Litin L, Willett W. Reproducibility and validity of an expanded self-administered semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire among male health professionals. Am J Epidemiol 1992;135:1114–26.

    Google Scholar 

  8. Posner BM, Morgan L. Dietary interviewing instruction manual. The use of the 2-D Food Portion Visual. Newton, MA: Nutrition Consulting Enterprises, 1982.

    Google Scholar 

  9. Willett W. Nutritional epidemiology. New York: Oxford University Press, 1990.

    Google Scholar 

  10. Willett W, Stampfer M. Total energy intake: implications for epidemiologic analyses. Am J Epidemiol 1986;124:17–27.

    Google Scholar 

  11. Beaton GH, Milner J, Corey P, et al. Sources of variance in 24-hour dietary recall data: implications for nutrition study design and interpretation. Am J Clin Nutr 1979;32:2546–49.

    Google Scholar 

  12. Perisic I, Rosner B. Comparisons of measures of interclass correlations: the general case of unequal group size. Statistics in Medicine 1999;18(12):1451–66.

    Google Scholar 

  13. Willett W, Sampson L, Browne M, et al. The use of a self-administered questionnaire to assess diet four years in the past. Am J Epidemiol 1988;127:188–99.

    Google Scholar 

  14. Sampson L. Food frequency questionnaires as a research instrument. Clin Nutr 1985;4:171.

    Google Scholar 

  15. Mullen B, Krantzler N, Grivetti L, Schultz H, Meiselman H. Validity of a food frequency questionnaire for the determination of individual food intake. Am J Clin Nutr 1984;39:136.

    Google Scholar 

  16. Feskansich D, Rimm E, Giovannucci E, et al. Reproducibility and validity of a food intake measurement from semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire. J Am Diet Assoc 1993;93:790–6.

    Google Scholar 

  17. Field A, Peterson K, Gortmaker S, Cheung L, Rockett H, Fox MK, Colditz G. Reproducibility and validity of a food frequency questionnaire among fourth to seventh grade innercity school children: implications of age and day-to-day variation in dietary intake. Public Health Nutr 1999;2(3):293–300.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts

    Esther K. Wei & Graham A. Colditz

  2. Channing Laboratory, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts

    Alison E. Field & Bernard A. Rosner

  3. Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts

    Alison E. Field

  4. Department of Maternal and Child Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts

    Jane Gardner

  5. Nutrition and Maternal and Child Health Consultant, Northfield, Vermont

    Carol W. Suitor

  6. Department of Biostatistics, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts

    Bernard A. Rosner

Authors
  1. Esther K. Wei
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Jane Gardner
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Alison E. Field
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Bernard A. Rosner
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Graham A. Colditz
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Carol W. Suitor
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Esther K. Wei.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Wei, E.K., Gardner, J., Field, A.E. et al. Validity of a Food Frequency Questionnaire in Assessing Nutrient Intakes of Low-Income Pregnant Women. Matern Child Health J 3, 241–246 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022385607731

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022385607731

Search

Navigation