Relative Validity and Reproducibility of a New 44-Item Diet and Food Frequency Questionnaire Among Adults: Online Assessment.

BACKGROUND: Dietary questionnaires currently available which can assess the habitual diet are timely, costly, or not adapted well to the modern diet; thus, there is a need for a shorter food frequency e-Questionnaire (FFeQ) adapted to Western diets, in order to properly estimate energy and macronutrient intakes or rank individuals according to food and nutrient intakes. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the relative validity and reproducibility of a 30-minute and 44-item FFeQ in a sample of adults obtained from the general population. METHODS: A sample of French adults was recruited through social media and an advertising campaign. A total of 223 volunteers completed the FFeQ twice at one-year intervals and were included in the reproducibility study. During that interval, 92 participants completed three-to-six 24-hour recalls and were included in the validity study. Nutrient and dietary intakes were computed for all validity and reproducibility participants. The level of agreement between the two methods was evaluated for nutrient and food group intakes using classification into quintiles of daily intake, correlation coefficients and Bland-Altman plots. RESULTS: For relative validity, correlation coefficients ranged from 0.09 to 0.88 (unadjusted correlation coefficients, median: 0.48) and 0.02 to 0.68 (deattenuated and energy adjusted correlation coefficients, median: 0.50) for food group and nutrient intakes, respectively. The median proportion of subjects classified into the same or adjacent quintile was 73% and 66% for food and nutrient intakes, respectively. Bland-Altman plots showed good agreement across the range of intakes. Regarding reproducibility, intraclass correlation coefficients ranged from 0.33 to 0.72 (median: 0.60) and 0.55 to 0.73 (median: 0.64), for food and nutrient intakes, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The FFeQ showed acceptable validity and reproducibility in a sample of adults based on their food and nutrient intakes. The FFeQ is a promising and low-cost tool that can be used in large-scale online epidemiological studies or clinical routines and could be integrated into evidence-based smartphone apps for assessing diet components.

Validity and reproducibility of a short food frequency questionnaire among patients with chronic kidney disease.

BACKGROUND: A balanced diet is essential to slowing the progression of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and managing the symptoms. Currently, no tool is available to easily and quickly assess energy and macronutrient intake in patients with non end-stage CKD. We aimed to develop and evaluate the validity and reproducibility of a new short 49-item food frequency questionnaire (SFFQ) adapted to patients with CKD. METHODS: The CKD-REIN study is a prospective cohort that enrolled 3033 patients with moderate or advanced CKD from a national sample of nephrology clinics. A sub-sample of 201 patients completed the SFFQ twice, at a one-year interval and were included in the reproducibility study. During this interval, 127 patients also completed six 24-h recalls and were included in the validity study. Main nutrient and dietary intakes were computed. Validity was evaluated by calculating crude, energy-adjusted and de-attenuated correlation coefficients (CC) between FFQ and the mean of the 24-h recall results. Bland-Altman plots were performed and cross-classification into quintiles of consumption of each nutrient and food group was computed. Reproducibility between the two SFFQs was evaluated by intraclass CC (ICC). RESULTS: Regarding validity, CC ranged from 0.05 to 0.79 (unadjusted CC, median: 0.40) and 0.10 to 0.59 (de-attenuated CC, median: 0.35) for food group and nutrient intakes, respectively. Five of the most important nutrients of interest in CKD, i.e. protein, calcium, phosphorus, potassium, and sodium had de-attenuated CC of 0.46, 0.43, 0.39, 0.32, and 0.12, respectively. The median of classification into the same or adjacent quintiles was 68% and 65% for food and nutrient intakes, respectively, and ranged from 63% to 69% for the five nutrients mentioned before. Bland-Altman plots showed good agreement across the range of intakes. ICC ranged from 0.18 to 0.66 (median: 0.46). CONCLUSIONS: The CKD-REIN SFFQ showed acceptable validity and reproducibility in a sample of patients with CKD, notably for CKD nutrients of importance. It can now be used in large-scale epidemiological studies to easily assess the relations between diet and CKD outcomes as well as in clinical routine. It may also serve as a basis for the development of FFQs in international CKD cohort networks.

High adherence to the French dietary guidelines decreases type 2 diabetes risk in females through pathways of obesity markers: Evidence from the E3N-EPIC prospective cohort study.

OBJECTIVE: Obesity and type 2 diabetes (T2D) have been associated with low adherence to the 2017 French food-based dietary guidelines, as assessed by the Programme National Nutrition Santé - guidelines score 2 (PNNS-GS2). Whether the association between T2D and PNNS-GS2 is direct or mediated by obesity has been little investigated. RESEARCH METHODS: The study included 71,450 women from the E3N-EPIC cohort, mean age of 52.9 y (SD 6.7). The simplified PNNS-GS2 was derived via food history questionnaire. Multivariable Cox regression models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of T2D. Causal mediation analyses were used to decompose the total effect of sPNNS-GS2 on T2D into a direct effect and indirect effect mediated by body mass index (BMI) or the waist-hip ratio (WHR). RESULTS: During a mean follow-up of 19 y, 3679 incident T2D cases were identified and validated. There was a linear association between adherence to sPNNS-GS2 and T2D (P-nonlinearity = 0.92). In the fully adjusted model, each 1-SD increase in the sPNNS-GS2 was associated with a lower T2D risk [HR (95% CI), 0.92 (0.89, 0.95)]. The overall associations were mainly explained by sPNNS-GS2-associated excess weight, with BMI and WHR mediating 52% and 58% of the associations, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Higher adherence to French food-based dietary guidelines was associated with a lower risk of T2D in women, and a significant portion of this effect could be attributed to excess weight measured by BMI or WHR. This finding helps better understand the mechanisms underlying the diet-T2D association.

Palaeolithic diet score and risk of breast cancer among postmenopausal women overall and by hormone receptor and histologic subtypes.

BACKGROUND: The Palaeolithic diet (PD) has gained popularity globally. There is emerging evidence of its putative health benefits as short-term effects on chronic diseases have been reported. We evaluated the association between long-term adherence to the PD and breast cancer (BC) risk among postmenopausal women. METHODS: 65,574 women from the Etude Epidémiologique auprès de femmes de la Mutuelle Générale de l'Education Nationale (E3N) cohort were followed from 1993 to 2014. Incident BC cases were identified and validated. The PD score was calculated using dietary intake self-reported at baseline (1993) and follow-up (2005) or baseline only if censored before follow-up. Multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to estimate BC hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). RESULTS: Over a mean follow-up of 20 years, 3968 incident BC cases occurred. An increase of 1 standard deviation in the PD score was associated with an 8% lower BC risk, fully-adjusted model: HR1-SD 0.92, 95% CI; 0.89, 0.95. Compared to women with low adherence to the PD, women with high adherence had a 17% lower BC risk, HRQ5 vs Q1 0.83, 95% CI; 0.75, 0.92, Ptrend < 0.01. When considering BC subtypes, we observed the same pattern of association (Pheterogeneity > 0.10 for all). CONCLUSIONS: High adherence to a PD characterised by fruit, vegetables, nuts, fish, and lean meat and limited in dairy, grains, legumes, refined sugar, and alcohol was associated with a lower BC risk. The lack of heterogeneity according to BC subtypes could indicate the involvement of non-hormonal mechanisms. The protocol is registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT03285230. REGISTRY: The protocol is registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT03285230.

Long-lasting Symptoms After an Acute COVID-19 Infection and Factors Associated With Their Resolution.

Importance: Persistent symptoms after SARS-CoV-2 infection are an emerging public health problem. The duration of these symptoms remains poorly documented. Objective: To describe the temporal dynamics of persistent symptoms after SARS-CoV-2 infection and the factors associated with their resolution. Design, Setting, and Participants: This cross-sectional study involved 53 047 participants from 3 French adult population-based cohorts (CONSTANCES [Consultants des Centres d'Examens de Santé], E3N/E4N, and Nutrinet-Santé) who were included in a nationwide survey about SARS-CoV-2 infection. All participants were asked to complete self-administered questionnaires between April 1 and June 30, 2020. Variables included sociodemographic characteristics, comorbid conditions, COVID-19 diagnosis, and acute symptoms. Blood samples were obtained for serologic analysis between May 1 and November 30, 2020, from patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection defined as enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay immunoglobulin G antispike detection confirmed with a neutralization assay. A follow-up internet questionnaire was completed between June 1 and September 30, 2021, with details on persistent symptoms, their duration, and SARS-CoV-2 infection diagnosis by polymerase chain reaction. Main Outcomes and Measures: Persistent symptoms were defined as symptoms occurring during the acute infection and lasting 2 or more months. Survival models for interval-censored data were used to estimate symptom duration from the acute episode. Multivariable adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) were estimated for age, sex, and comorbid conditions. Factors associated with the resolution of symptoms were assessed. Results: A total of 3972 participants (2531 women [63.7%; 95% CI, 62.2%-65.2%]; mean [SD] age, 50.9 [12.7] years) had been infected with SARS-CoV-2. Of these 3972 participants, 2647 (66.6% [95% CI, 65.1%-68.1%]) reported at least 1 symptom during the acute phase. Of these 2647 participants, 861 (32.5% [95% CI, 30.8%-34.3%]) reported at least 1 persistent symptom lasting 2 or more months after the acute phase. After 1 year of follow-up, the estimated proportion of individuals with complete symptom resolution was 89.9% (95% CI, 88.7%-90.9%) with acute symptoms. Older age (>60 years; HR, 0.78; 95% CI, 0.68-0.90), female sex (HR, 0.64; 95% CI, 0.58-0.70), history of cancer (HR, 0.61; 95% CI, 0.47-0.79), history of tobacco consumption (HR, 0.80; 95% CI, 0.73-0.88), high body mass index (≥30: HR, 0.75; 95% CI, 0.63-0.89), and high number of symptoms during the acute phase (>4; HR, 0.43; 95% CI, 0.39-0.48) were associated with a slower resolution of symptoms. Conclusions and Relevance: In this cross-sectional study, persistent symptoms were still present in 10.1% of infected individuals at 1 year after SARS-CoV-2 infection. Given the high level of cumulative incidence of COVID-19, the absolute prevalent number of people with persistent symptoms is a public health concern.