Assessing vitamin A intake among pregnant women: The creation and validation of a semi-quantitative FFQ specific for vitamin A in a tertiary health care center

Abstract

Background: This study aims to develop a semi-quantitative Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ) to assess vitamin A levels using 24-hour food recall in pregnant women and further validate the formulated FFQ. Our study found a significant correlation between the 24-hour recall and FFQ results, indicating that the developed FFQ is a valid and useful tool for assessing vitamin A intake in pregnant women. Materials and Methods: This was a two-phase study conducted at a Tertiary health care centre in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, consisting of two groups: Group A (55 participants) and Group B (68 participants). Phase I consisted of administering a 24-hour food recall to group A participants to collect their vitamin A intake and develop a FFQ. During Phase II of the study, FFQ was administered to Group B participants, which estimated vitamin A intake over the past 30 days. These patients were then contacted within a week of the administration of FFQ, and a 24-hour recall was administered. The results collected from the 24-hour recall were used to validate FFQ. Results: Results showed r value under Pearson coefficient was 0.743 (95% CI = 0.613-0.834, p <0.001), indicating a strong and significant relationship, and rho under Spearman coefficient was 0.686 (95% CI = 0.535-0.794, p <0.001) indicated the presence of a significant correlation suggesting the FFQ is valid. Conclusions: The results of this study found that the developed FFQ is a valid and useful tool for assessing vitamin A intake in pregnant women and can be utilised to assess vitamin A intake.