A validation study concerning the effects of interview content, retention interval, and grade on children's recall accuracy for dietary intake and/or physical activity

Abstract

Background: Practitioners and researchers are interested in assessing children's dietary intake and physical activity together to maximize resources and minimize subject burden.

Objective: Our aim was to investigate differences in dietary and/or physical activity recall accuracy by content (diet only; physical activity only; diet and physical activity), retention interval (same-day recalls in the afternoon; previous-day recalls in the morning), and grade (third; fifth).

Design: Children (n=144; 66% African American, 13% white, 12% Hispanic, 9% other; 50% girls) from four schools were randomly selected for interviews about one of three contents. Each content group was equally divided by retention interval, each equally divided by grade, each equally divided by sex. Information concerning diet and physical activity at school was validated with school-provided breakfast and lunch observations, and accelerometry, respectively. Dietary accuracy measures were food-item omission and intrusion rates, and kilocalorie correspondence rate and inflation ratio. Physical activity accuracy measures were absolute and arithmetic differences for moderate to vigorous physical activity minutes.

Statistical analyses performed: For each accuracy measure, linear models determined effects of content, retention interval, grade, and their two-way and three-way interactions; ethnicity and sex were control variables.

Results: Content was significant within four interactions: intrusion rate (content×retention-interval×grade; P=0.0004), correspondence rate (content×grade; P=0.0004), inflation ratio (content×grade; P=0.0104), and arithmetic difference (content×retention-interval×grade; P=0.0070). Retention interval was significant for correspondence rate (P=0.0004), inflation ratio (P=0.0014), and three interactions: omission rate (retention-interval×grade; P=0.0095), intrusion rate, and arithmetic difference (both already mentioned). Grade was significant for absolute difference (P=0.0233) and five interactions mentioned. Content effects depended on other factors. Grade effects were mixed. Dietary accuracy was better with same-day than previous-day retention interval.

Conclusions: Results do not support integrating dietary intake and physical activity in children's recalls, but do support using shorter rather than longer retention intervals to yield more accurate dietary recalls. Additional validation studies need to clarify age effects and identify evidence-based practices to improve children's accuracy for recalling dietary intake and/or physical activity.

Keywords: Children; Dietary recall; Physical activity; Recall accuracy; School.

Figure 1

Design. Legend: Children in Subset One and Subset Three were observed eating school-provided breakfast and lunch in the cafeteria on a school day to correspond with the day covered in their interview; children in Subset Three also wore accelerometers at school on their observation day. Children in Subset Two wore accelerometers at school on a school day to correspond with the day covered in their interview. Each subset child was interviewed only once about time at school for the observation and/or accelerometer day (i.e., from arrival at school until school dismissed). The final sample consisted of 143 children because one third-grade girl’s interview with diet-&-physical-activity content and same-day recall in the afternoon retention interval had to be dropped during analyses when it was discovered that the accelerometer had recorded less than one hour of data.

Figure 2

Overview of multiple-pass interview protocols used to obtain recalls from children

Figure 2

Overview of multiple-pass interview protocols used to obtain recalls from children

Figure 2

Overview of multiple-pass interview protocols used to obtain recalls from children