Abstract
This study assessed test-retest reliability and relative validity of the Short Diet Questionnaire (SDQ) and usability of an online 24 h recall among 232 participants (62 years ± 9.1; 49.6% female) from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA). Participants were asked to complete four 24 h dietary recalls (24HRs) using the Automated Self-Administered 24-h Dietary Assessment Tool (ASA24-Canada-2014), two SDQ administrations (prior to recalls one and four), and the System Usability Scale (SUS) for ASA24. For the SDQ administrations, Intraclass Correlation Coefficients ranged from 0.49 to 0.57 for nutrients and 0.35 to 0.72 for food groups. Mean intakes estimated from the SDQ were lower compared than those from the 24HRs. For nutrients, correlation coefficients were highest for fiber, calcium, and vitamin D (45–64 years: 0.59, 0.50, 0.51; >65 years: 0.29, 0.38, 0.49, p < 0.01); Kappas ranged from 0.14 to 0.37 in those 45–64 years and 0.17 to 0.32 in participants >65 years. Among the 70% who completed all recalls independently, the SUS indicated poor usability, though the majority reported feeling confident using ASA24. Overall, the SDQ captures intake with varying test-retest reliability and accuracy by nutrient and age. Further research is needed to inform use of a more comprehensive dietary measure in the CLSA.
Highlights
There is great scientific interest in the role of diet and nutrition in chronic disease prevention and healthy aging [1,2,3], dietary intake is arguably one of the most difficult exposures to adequately measure in population-based studies [4]
Our results suggest that among older adults, the Short Diet Questionnaire (SDQ) captures intake with varying reliability and accuracy by dietary component and age group
The results were most promising for dietary fiber, vitamin D, and calcium, especially for those under 65 years
Summary
There is great scientific interest in the role of diet and nutrition in chronic disease prevention and healthy aging [1,2,3], dietary intake is arguably one of the most difficult exposures to adequately measure in population-based studies [4]. In addition to challenges associated with measuring diet in large studies regardless of the specific population [4], accurate dietary reporting in older adults can be further complicated by age-related declines in memory, cognitive capacity, and hearing and/or vision [5,6,7,8,9,10]. To balance data collection requirements, time constraints, and participant burden, the CLSA team developed the Short Diet Questionnaire (SDQ), a 36-item non-quantitative food frequency questionnaire focused on foods and nutrients of concern in adult populations, including total fat and fatty acid classes, dietary fiber, calcium, vitamin D, and fruits and vegetables [12]. The SDQ was developed as a brief dietary assessment instrument to avoid adding unnecessary participant burden to an already time-intensive data collection process. Though beneficial for reducing participant burden, short dietary assessment tools tend to capture diet with less accuracy than more comprehensive tools, necessitating evaluation to guide appropriate data analyses and interpretation
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
