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Using Dietary Reference Intake–Based Methods to Estimate Prevalence of Inadequate Nutrient Intake among Female Students in Brazil

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Abstract

The objective of this study was to estimate the prevalence of inadequate usual nutrient intake among female university students. This was a cross-sectional study in which 119 students at a public university in the State of São Paulo, Brazil, completed 3-day estimated food records. These were analyzed for nutrient content, and intake distributions were determined. Nutrient intake distributions were estimated using the National Research Council method. For nutrients for which an Estimated Average Requirement has been established, the Estimated Average Requirement cutpoint method was used to determine the proportion of students with inadequate intake. The students’ food records indicated inadequate intakes of folate (99%), zinc (47%), and copper (33%). For approximately 95% of the students in this study, calcium was less than the Adequate Intake. The results showed the need for improvement in dietary choices to minimize the prevalence of inadequate intake of folate, zinc, copper, and calcium in this group.

Section snippets

Subjects

This was a cross-sectional study to evaluate dietary intake among 119 female nutrition students, aged between 19 and 30 years, at a public university in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, during the 1997 and 1998 school years. Participation was voluntary and the sample loss was 1.65%, due to refusal. Data were collected using a lifestyle and diet questionnaire. The study protocol was approved by the ethics committee of the School of Public Health, University of São Paulo.

Dietary Assessment

After receiving detailed

Results and Discussion

The present study is the first done in Brazil to assess the adequacy of nutrient intake of women, using data adjusted for day-to-day variability in intake (within-person variation) and recently released Dietary Reference Intakes. As has been clearly demonstrated by the National Research Council (8) and Institute of Medicine (1), adjusting for day-to-day variation in intake may substantially reduce the error when estimating the proportion of a given population group whose intakes are less than a

Conclusions

The diets of the female college students studied did not contain adequate quantities of folate or calcium. The results demonstrate the need for guidance for the population studied to improve intake of these nutrients by means of foods or supplements.

J. M. Morimoto is a researcher, School of Public Health, University of São Paulo, Brazil

References (11)

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J. M. Morimoto is a researcher, School of Public Health, University of São Paulo, Brazil

R. M. Fisberg and D. M. L. Marchioni are professors with the Department of Nutrition, School of Public Health, University of São Paulo, Brazil

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