On the importance of using multiple methods of dietary assessment.
BACKGROUND
Plasma carotenoid concentrations reflect intake of vegetables and fruits, the major food sources of these compounds. This study compared the ability of 2 measures of dietary intake (24-hour diet recalls and food frequency questionnaires [FFQs]) to corroborate plasma carotenoid concentrations in a subset of women participating in a diet intervention trial.


METHODS
Plasma carotenoid concentrations and dietary intakes, estimated from 24-hour diet recalls and FFQs, were examined at baseline and 1 year later in a subset of 395 study participants (197 intervention and 198 comparison group). We used longitudinal models to examine associations between estimated intakes and plasma carotenoid concentrations. These analyses were stratified by study group and adjusted for body mass index (BMI), plasma cholesterol concentration, and total energy intake. We conducted simulations to compare mean-squared errors of prediction of each assessment method.


RESULTS
In mixed-effects models, the estimated carotenoid intakes from both dietary assessment methods were strongly associated with plasma concentrations of alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, and lutein. Furthermore, modeling the 2 sources of intake information as joint predictors reduced the prediction error.


CONCLUSIONS
These findings underscore the importance of using multiple measures of dietary assessment in studies examining diet-disease associations.
Natarajan
Loki
L
Cancer Center, University of California, San Diego, California 92093-0645, USA.
Rock
Cheryl L
CL
Major
Jacqueline M
JM
Thomson
Cynthia A
CA
Caan
Bette J
BJ
Flatt
Shirley W
SW
Chilton
Janice A
JA
Hollenbach
Kathryn A
KA
Newman
Vicky A
VA
Faerber
Susan
S
Ritenbaugh
Cheryl K
CK
Gold
Ellen
E
Stefanick
Marcia L
ML
Jones
Lovell A
LA
Marshall
James R
JR
Pierce
John P
JP
D000328:Adult; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002338:Carotenoids / Q000097:blood*; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000097:blood; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D004032:Diet / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004435:Eating; D002149:Energy Intake; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D014975:Lutein / Q000097:blood; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D015596:Nutrition Assessment
D002338:Carotenoids; D002784:Cholesterol; D014975:Lutein