Documenting the reasons people have for choosing their food

Understanding the reasons that people have for choosing their food, and why these choices vary, may affect the dietary advice and assumptions about the nutrient adequacy of future food intake. One group of respondents living in Jakarta, Indonesia completed two interviews with the same combined food frequency and qualitative technique, called Food Choice Map (FCM) over a one-month period. Another group of Indonesian respondents from a town in Java completed an FCM interview and a 24-hour recall interview. The Food Choice Map identified the same major foods as contributing to individual intakes as are identified by a 24-hr recall interview. The FCM also identified reasons for changes in food choice. The reasons for food choices varied less than the different food items chosen. The FCM links data on dietary behaviours with perceptions that respondents use to explain of those behaviours. Such data can be used to develop communication strategies for health promotion.