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Title: Food Composition Data: The Foundation of Dietetic Practice and Research

Author
item PENINGTON, JEAN - NIH/NIDDK
item STUMBO, PHYLLIS - UNIV OF IOWA
item MURPHY, SUZANNE - UNIV OF HI CANCER CTR
item MCNUTT, SUZANNE - WESTAT INC, SALT LAKE UT
item ELDRIDGE, ALISON - GENERAL MILLS INC
item McCabe Sellers, Beverly
item CHENARD, CATHERINE - UNIV OF IOWA

Submitted to: Journal Of The American Dietetic Association
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/2/2007
Publication Date: 12/1/2007
Citation: Penington, J., Stumbo, P., Murphy, S.P., McNutt, S., Eldridge, A., McCabe Sellers, B.J., Chenard, C. 2007. Food composition data: The foundation of dietetic practice and research. Journal of the American Dietetic Association. 107(12):2105-2113.

Interpretive Summary: This article presents brief reviews of presentations about food composition data as the foundation of dietetic practice and research. The presentations were made at the 30th Annual National Nutrient Databank Conference in Honolulu as a satellite conference to the Food and Nutrition Conference Exhibit of The American Dietetic Association in September, 2006. The topics and presenters represented the current issues and research findings about nutrient databanks role in dietetic research and practice.

Technical Abstract: Food composition databases and dietary assessment systems are important tools for food and nutrition professionals. The availability and accessibility of data have improved over time along with the technology to convert the information into useful formats for planning diets, writing educational materials, counseling patients, and conducting research. Primary sources of food composition data include government, academic, and other institutional databases; the food industry; and scientific literature. Changes in the marketplace affect food availability and composition and affect the accuracy and adequacy of food composition databases. Improvements in both food composition data and in dietary assessment methods have worked synergistically to improve estimates of dietary intake. The development of databases for food frequency assessment systems requires special considerations for data aggregation for each food or food grouping in the questionnaires. Considerations for selecting a dietary assessment system include appropriateness of the data for the intended audience or purpose, efficiency of the search strategy for retrieving data, content and format of summary information, and cost. Needs for food composition data vary depending on dietetic practice area; however, most food and nutrition professionals will benefit from becoming more informed about food composition data, exploring new ways to educate themselves about databases and database systems, and advocating for what is most needed in dietetic practice.