Dietary recommendations and identified research needs for The National Children's Study

Many years of research have resulted in a set of accepted methods for dietary assessment of adult populations in large epidemiologic studies. Yet, relatively little has been done to develop and validate dietary methods for studies of pregnant and lactating women, infants, children, and adolescents. As plans for including dietary assessment in the National Children's Study (NCS) were developed, it became clear that complex methodological issues required further study and clarification. Along with validation of existing and new instruments, research is required to identify key dietary characteristics to be assessed at various stages of childhood and adolescence and how that information can best be collected. The types of instruments used, the mode of data collection (automated vs. nonautomated instruments), the timing of data collection, and differentiation between children and parents as respondents are areas requiring further inquiry. This paper presents the research needs identified through the process followed to provide the NCS with recommendations for the collection of dietary intake data.