(P29-009-23) Validity of Semi-Quantitative Food Frequency Questionnaire for Korean Adults With Obesity

Objectives: This study was conducted to evaluate the validity of a semi-quantitative food-frequency questionnaire (FFQ) newly developed for Korean adults with obesity.

Methods: A total of 138 Korean adults (19-64 years) with obesity were recruited. Participants‘ dietary intakes were assessed using the FFQ, which consisted of 129 food items, and two 3-day dietary records (3DRs) as the reference method for validating FFQ. Among the recruited participants, the data of 122 who completed FFQ and 3DRs were included in the statistical analyses for FFQ validation. The mean differences in intakes of energy and nutrients between the FFQ and 3DRs were examined using paired t-tests. In addition, Spearman‘s correlation coefficients analysis and Cohen’s weighted kappa were performed to examine the agreement between the two methods. All statistical analyses were performed using the SAS 9.4 (SAS Institute, Cary, NC, USA), and a p-value ≤ 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

Results: There were no significant differences in intakes of energy, protein, lipid, fiber, and vitamin E between the two methods, but FFQ had higher intakes of carbohydrate, sodium, and saturated fat and a lower intake of vitamin A than 3DRs. Spearman’s correlation coefficients analysis showed significant positive correlations in intakes of energy, protein, lipid, carbohydrate, fiber, sodium, vitamin A, and vitamin E between the two methods (r=0.19-0.36, P< 0.05 for all), except in saturated fat intake. The exact agreement of quartile distribution for nutrients between the FFQ and two 3DRs ranged from 23.0% (saturated fat) to 38.5% (energy, sodium).

Conclusions: The results support that the newly developed FFQ is valid to apply in epidemiological studies investigating the dietary patterns of Korean adults with obesity.

Funding Sources: This study was funded by a research grant from Korea Food Research Institute.