Development of a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire for use in United Arab Emirates and Kuwait based on local foods.
BACKGROUND
The Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ) is one of the most commonly used tools in epidemiologic studies to assess long-term nutritional exposure. The purpose of this study is to describe the development of a culture specific FFQ for Arab populations in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Kuwait.


METHODS
We interviewed samples of Arab populations over 18 years old in UAE and Kuwait assessing their dietary intakes using 24-hour dietary recall. Based on the most commonly reported foods and portion sizes, we constructed a food list with the units of measurement. The food list was converted to a Semi-Quantitative Food Frequency Questionnaire (SFFQ) format following the basic pattern of SFFQ using usual reported portions. The long SFFQ was field-tested, shortened and developed into the final SFFQ. To estimate nutrients from mixed dishes we collected recipes of those mixed dishes that were commonly eaten, and estimated their nutritional content by using nutrient values of the ingredients that took into account method of preparation from the US Department of Agriculture's Food Composition Database.


RESULTS
The SFFQs consist of 153 and 152 items for UAE and Kuwait, respectively. The participants reported average intakes over the past year. On average the participants reported eating 3.4 servings/d of fruits and 3.1 servings/d of vegetables in UAE versus 2.8 servings/d of fruits and 3.2 servings/d of vegetables in Kuwait. Participants reported eating cereals 4.8 times/d in UAE and 5.3 times/d in Kuwait. The mean intake of dairy products was 2.2/d in UAE and 3.4 among Kuwaiti.


CONCLUSIONS
We have developed SFFQs to measure diet in UAE and Kuwait that will serve the needs of public health researchers and clinicians and are currently validating those instruments.
Dehghan
Mahshid
M
Hamilton General Hospital, Population Health Research Institute, 237 Barton, Street East, Hamilton, ON L8L 2X2, Canada. mahshid@ccc.mcmaster.ca
Al Hamad
Nawal
N
Yusufali
AfzalHussein
A
Nusrath
Fathimunissa
F
Yusuf
Salim
S
Merchant
Anwar T
AT
D000328:Adult; D004034:Diet Surveys; D002523:Edible Grain; D004522:Educational Status; D002149:Energy Intake; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D005523:Food Supply; D005638:Fruit; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D007730:Kuwait; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015596:Nutrition Assessment; D009753:Nutritive Value; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014479:United Arab Emirates; D014481:United States; D016885:United States Department of Agriculture; D014675:Vegetables