Assessment of Dietary Intake in Man: A Review of Available Methods

Information on dietary intake is required to assess and to monitor nutritional status over time and to define baselines for therapeutic dietary regimens. However, it is difficult to obtain an accurate measurement of dietary intake in man. First, it may take several days to gain a representative assessment, secondly, the process may be subject to error and thirdly, assessments are often tedious and difficult for patients to perform and for investigators to undertake. In this review the time periods for assessment are discussed, the methods for measuring dietary intake are described, their relative accuracy and application in both clinical and research settings are evaluated, and future technological advances which might facilitate the assessment of dietary intake in man are enumerated