Danone Dietary Assessment Toolkit (DanoneDAT)
The collection and analysis of dietary data is an important component of many research studies. Many challenges accompany the assessment of diet in clinical and epidemiological research. We have therefore created the Danone Dietary Assessment Toolkit (DanoneDAT), which contains a step-by-step guide and various resources for the design, collection and analysis of dietary data, to be used by researchers conducting studies that involve dietary intake as primary or secondary outcomes. Development of DanoneDAT was supported by Danone Nutricia Research and by European Union’s Seventh Framework Program under grant agreement HEALTH-F4-2012-305312 (METACARDIS).
The toolkit contains the following components:
PART I: METHOD SELECTION
– Introductory questions for users about the goals for dietary analysis in their research study.
– General considerations for dietary assessment, including errors and pitfalls in dietary data collection.
– A decision tree for selection of the three most commonly used dietary assessment methods.
– A decision matrix to provide further guidance on method selection (based on the DAPA toolkit).
– Flashcards containing general information on each method. The methods included in the toolkit are: Food frequency questionnaires, repeated 24-hour recalls, and food diaries.
PART II: DIET DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS
– Considerations for specific information on dietary intake needed, and the format in which the data need to be collected.
– Recommendations for data monitoring, quality control (including identification of mis-reporters), and data cleaning.
– A brief overview of data analysis.
This toolkit was developed by Drs. Maria Carlota Dao and Bridget Holmes as part of an ongoing collaboration between the Institute of Cardiometabolism and Nutrition and Danone Nutricia Research. For questions, please contact: bridget.holmes@danone.com
To download the toolkit (Excel format) please click on the following link: DanoneDAT