Discontinued codes in the USDA Food and Nutrient Database for Dietary Studies

Abstract

The Food and Nutrient Database for Dietary Studies (FNDDS), a database used to convert foods and beverages reported in What We Eat in America (WWEIA), National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) into gram amounts and to determine their nutrient values, is updated and a new version released to accompany each 2-year release of WWEIA, NHANES. Beginning with FNDDS 2011–2012 and continuing with FNDDS 2013–2014 extensive updates resulted in a notable increase in the number of codes added; additionally many codes were discontinued during these survey cycles, which can pose challenges for researchers. The objective of this short communication is to describe a file developed which lists discontinued codes between survey cycles, provides a rationale for discontinuation and details how they may be linked to a new or existing code(s) in the subsequent version of FNDDS. The availability of a file to link appropriate discontinued codes between FNDDS versions benefits researchers conducting trend analysis or use FNDDS to support other food intake databases.