Validation of a Food Frequency Questionnaire: VioScreen-Allergy

Area of Science:

• Nutrition Science
• Allergy Research
• Dietary Assessment

Background:

• The maternal diet index (MDI) is linked to offspring allergy.
• An online pictorial food frequency questionnaire (FFQ), VioScreen-Allergy, assesses dietary intake, including allergens and MDI components.
• Validation of VioScreen-Allergy is crucial for its use in research.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the intermethod reliability of VioScreen-Allergy against 24-hour dietary recalls.
• To evaluate the test-retest reliability of VioScreen-Allergy.
• To determine the external validity of VioScreen-Allergy using carotenoid levels as a biomarker.

Main Methods:

• Females completed four 24-hour dietary recalls and two VioScreen-Allergy FFQs.
• Linear mixed models compared VioScreen-Allergy intake with 24-hour recalls for reliability.
• Associations between VioScreen-Allergy-derived nutrient intake and biomarker measurements assessed external validity.

Main Results:

• No significant differences were found between VioScreen-Allergy and 24-hour recalls for most nutrients, allergens, and MDI scores.
• VioScreen-Allergy demonstrated good test-retest reliability with no significant differences between repeated measures.
• VioScreen-Allergy intake of beta-carotene and orange vegetables correlated significantly with Veggie Meter® measurements.

Conclusions:

• VioScreen-Allergy demonstrates reasonable utility for assessing food allergens and MDI in research contexts.
• The VioScreen questionnaire is suitable for evaluating macro- and micronutrient intake in future studies.
• Further validation studies are ongoing for infant and young child populations.