Comparing Methods from the National Cancer Institute vs Multiple Source Method for Estimating Usual Intake of Nutrients in the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latino Youth

Abstract

BackgroundThe Multiple Source Method (MSM) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) method estimate usual dietary intake from short-term dietary assessment instruments, such as 24-hour recalls. Their performance varies according to sample size and nutrients distribution. A comparison of these methods among a multiethnic youth population, for which nutrient composition and dietary variability may differ from adults, is a gap in the literature. ObjectiveTo compare the performance of the NCI method relative to MSM in estimating usual dietary intakes in Hispanic/Latino adolescents. DesignData derived from the cross-sectional population-based Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latino Youth, an ancillary study of offspring of participants in the adult Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latino Youth cohort. Dietary data were obtained by two 24-hour recalls. Participants/settingOne thousand four hundred fifty-three Hispanic/Latino youth (aged 8 to 16 years) living in four urban US communities (Bronx, NY; Chicago, IL; Miami, FL; and San Diego, CA) during 2012 through 2014. Main outcome measuresThe NCI method and the MSM were applied to estimate usual intake of total energy, macronutrients, minerals and vitamins, added sugar, and caffeine. Statistical analysesMean, standard deviation, minimum and maximum values, coefficient of variation, variance ratio, and differences between NCI and MSM methods and the 2-day mean were estimated in several percentiles of the distribution, as well as concordance correlation coefficients and Bland-Altman plot analysis. ResultsThe distributions of all nutrients studied were very similar between NCI and MSM. The correlation between NCI and MSM was >0.80 for all nutrients (P<0.001), except dietary cholesterol, vitamin C, and n-3 fatty acids. In individual estimations, NCI method predicted higher estimates and lower variance than the MSM. The lowest level of agreement was observed in the values at the tails of the distribution, and for nutrients with high variance ratio. ConclusionsOverall, both MSM and NCI method provided acceptable estimates of the usual intake distribution using 24-hour recall, and they better represented the usual intake compared with 2-day mean, correcting for intraindividual variability.