Survey of the Diet of Pima Indians Using Quantitative Food Frequency Assessment and 24-Hour Recall

Objective A dietary survey was conducted in the Gila River Indian Community in Arizona using two methods of dietary assessment — 24-hour recall and quantitative food frequency (QFF) assessment — to determine the usual intake of the population.Design Interviews were conducted by Pima women who were trained and monitored by a research dietitian. Energy and nutrient intake were calculated using a computerized dietary database that included specific Pima foods.Subjects An age- and sex-stratified sample of 575 Pima Indians (273 men, 302 women) aged 18 to 74 years participated in the study.Statistical analyses Spearman correlations were used to compare the results of the two survey methods for energy and each nutrient. Intraclass correlations were used to measure reproducibility.Results According to the 24-hour recall, mean reported energy intakes within decades of age were 95% to 112% of those in the US population for Pima women, and 76% to 94% of those in the US population for Pima men. Total energy intake assessed using QFF was 30% higher in men and 33% higher in women than the intake assessed using the 24-hour recall method.Conclusions A large dietary survey conducted using lay interviewers in a Native-American community was as reproducible as studies conducted in the general US population. The Pima diet was distributed among the major nutrients in a proportion similar to the US diet. J Am Diet Assoc. 1996; 96:778–784.