Comparação de dois programas computacionais utilizados na estimativa do consumo alimentar de crianças / Comparison of two nutrition software applications used to estimate food intake of children

RESUMO

OBJETIVO: Avaliar a concordância entre dois programas computacionais de análise do consumo alimentar de crianças de 6 a 30 meses. MATERIAIS E MÉTODOS: Foram selecionadas 100 crianças de 6 a 30 meses de idade entre 407 crianças cujas mães responderam o recordatório de 24 horas em visitas domiciliares. Foram comparados 1) as gramaturas das medidas caseiras dos 10 alimentos mais consumidos entre os dois programas e em relação a uma tabela de pesos e medidas nacional; 2) os valores médios do consumo de consumo de energia e nutrientes. A análise estatística foi feita através do coeficiente de correlação de Spearman e metodologia descrita por Bland & Altman. RESULTADOS: Foram observadas diferenças entre as gramaturas em relação à medida caseira correspondente para quase todos os alimentos selecionados. Comparando as médias de consumo entre os dois programas, observamos maior correlação entre o consumo de carboidratos (r=0,81) e menor correlação para o consumo de zinco (r=0,52). As médias de consumo de energia e de macronutrientes pelo programa Virtual Nutri foram superiores aos valores obtidos pelo NutWin, enquanto que para o consumo de micronutrientes observamos valores superiores na análise pelo program NutWin. O consumo de vitamina C e retinol revelou diferença reduzida entre os programas. CONCLUSÃO: Os programas selecionados para análise do consumo dietético infantil apresentam diferenças quanto às gramaturas utilizadas, que se refletem através das diferenças na estimava de energia e nutrientes consumidos.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the agreement between two nutrition software applications frequently used to estimate food intake in children from 6 to 30 months of age. METHODS: One hundred children, from 6 to 30 months, were sampled from 407 children, whose mothers answered a 24-hour recall. Interviews took place in the households. Sizes of portions for the 10 most frequently consumed foods were compared based on both software applications. Portion sizes in each software application were compared to the national table of portion sizes. Estimated energy intake and nutrients were also analyzed. The statistical analysis was conducted using the Spearman correlation coefficient and the Bland & Altman method. RESULTS: There were great differences between portion sizes in each software application in relation to the corresponding portion size in the national table for almost all foods selected. Comparing the mean intake between the two software applications, the greatest correlation was between carbohydrates (r=0.81) and the smallest correlation was observed for zinc (r=0.52). The mean energy intake and macronutrient intake by the Virtual Nutri program were higher than values based on the NutWin application. On the other hand, values of micronutrient intake were higher on the NutWin software. The two software applications differed slightly on the intakes of vitamin C and retinol. CONCLUSION: The choice of software application may play an important role when estimating the food intake of children, both in relation to portion sizes and also because of food composition tables.