title: The development and evaluation of a novel Internet-based computer program to assess previous-day dietary and physical activity behaviours in adults: the Synchronised Nutrition and Activity Program for Adults (SNAPA™).
abstract: The Synchronised Nutrition and Activity Program for Adults (SNAPA™) was developed to address the need for accurate, reliable, feasible, inexpensive and low-burden methods for assessing specific dietary and physical activity behaviours in adults. Short-term test-retest reliability of SNAPA™ was assessed in forty-four adults (age 41·4 (SD17·3) years) who completed SNAPA™ twice in 1 day. Concurrent validity against direct dietary observation and combined heart rate and accelerometry was assessed in seventy-seven adults (age 34·4 (SD11·1) years). Test-retest reliability revealed no substantial systematic shifts in mean values of the outcome variables: percentage of food energy from fat (% fat), number of portions of fruit and vegetables (FV) and minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). For lunchtime dietary intake, the mean match rate between food items reported using SNAPA™ and those observed was 81·7%, with a phantom rate of 5·6%. Pearson's correlations between SNAPA™ and the reference methods ranged from 0·27 to 0·56 for % fat, FV portions and minutes of MVPA. For % fat and FV intake, there was no fixed or proportional bias, and mean differences between the methods (SNAPA™ - reference) were 5·1% and 0 portions, respectively. For minutes of MVPA, a fixed bias of - 28 min was revealed when compared with all minutes of MVPA measured by combined heart rate and accelerometry, whereas a proportional bias (slope 1·47) was revealed when compared with minutes carried out in bouts ≥ 10 min. SNAPA™ is a promising tool for measuring specific energy balance behaviours, though further work is required to improve accuracy for physical activity behaviours.
authors.affiliation: Obesity Related Behaviours Research Group, Wolfson Research Institute, Durham University, Stockton-on-Tees TS17 6BH, UK. frances.hillier@durham.ac.uk
authors.forename: Frances C
authors.initials: FC
authors.lastname: Hillier
authors.forename: Alan M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Batterham
authors.forename: Sean
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Crooks
authors.forename: Helen J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Moore
authors.forename: Carolyn D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Summerbell
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015982:Bias; D004032:Diet; D015930:Diet Records; D004435:Eating; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D007702:Kinetocardiography; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009043:Motor Activity; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012984:Software; D055815:Young Adult