Diet history: Method and applications

The diet history is a traditional method of analysis of food intake. In its traditional structure consists of three components that provide an overall information of the usual food consumption pattern of the individual and also detailed information on certain foods. The information is collected in an interview and requires highly experienced qualified interviewers. The quality of information depends largely on the skills of the interviewer. It is mostly used in clinical practice. It has also been used in studies of diet and health relationship to investigate the usual diet in the past. The high cost and long duration of the interview limit their usefulness in large epidemiological studies.