Introduction: 24/48- Hour dietary recall

Assessment of dietary intake can be estimated through the use of various tools, which differ depending on study objectives, design, and resources. One way is to classify them into prospective and retrospective methods. Another way of classification is into the current diet and food/dietary habits.

The 24/48 hours recall method is a retrospective method. In this method, subjects are asked to recall the food intake during the previous 24 hours or 48 hour period or the preceding day(s). Detailed descriptions of all foods and beverages consumed, including, if possible, brand names and cooking methods, are recorded by the interviewer. Mineral and vitamin supplement use is also noted.

To cover a longer time period you can repeat the interviews, and thereby get a better estimate of the individual’s intake, so-called repeated 24/48 hour recalls. The recalls can also be performed as telephone interviews. The advantages of these methods are that they are simple, cheap and large sample size is possible to obtain. In addition, as with all retrospective methods, food habits are not affected by the methods. The disadvantages of these methods are that the interviewer can affect the result and if the recalls are not repeated, the time period will be too short to be able to obtain information on the individual level. People have good as well as a bad memory and the ability to estimate quantities vary. These factors affect the quality of the methods.

Example: Assessment of dietary intake through 24/48- Hour dietary recall method

One example of 24 hours of dietary recall and some equivalent macro and micronutrients of the food consumed is shown in the table below. (The example given is from a typical Indian diet. The weight/quantity of the food and different nutrients are from Indian Council for Medical Research standard so may vary according to country)

S.N	Time	Food	Quantity (g)	Energy (kcal)	Protein (gm)	Fat (gm)	VitA (µg )	Iron (mg)	Folate (µg)
1	8:00am	Poha (rice flakes)	100	349	7.2	9.1	32	0.94	1
2	Milk	Milk	200	222	9	13	244	0.2	10
3	1:00pm	Chapatis (2) (bread)	80	244	6.4	7.36	32	1.552	15.2
4	1:00pm	Rice	200	210	3.6	0.4	48	0.54	6
5	1:00pm	Kadhi *	200	20.5	0.4	1.85	84	0.04	1.5
6	1:00pm	Capsicum	150	169.5	3.45	3.9	480	37.5	19.5
7	9:00pm	Rajma (kidney beans)	150	84	3.15	4.35	96	0.27	3
8	9:00pm	Rice	200	210	3.6	0.4	48	0.54	6
9	9:00pm	Pear	300	112.56	1.08	0.81	39.48	0.84	15.84
		Total	1580	1621.56	37.88	41.17	1103.48	42.422	78.04

*A dish containing yogurt, chickpea flour, vegetables, water

 

 

 

 

 

 




 
References

1. Gunnar Johansson (2014), Nutritional epidemiology ;Dietary assessments: use, design concepts, biological markers, pitfalls and validation Pg (9-12); ISBN: 978-91-87045-07-3, Halmstad University Press,
2.  Indian Food Composition Tables.
3. ALLOWANCES RD. NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS AND RECOMMENDED DIETARY ALLOWANCES FOR INDIANS
4. Health, N. (2010). PART D. Section 1: Energy Balance and Weigth Management. Cancer, 2005-2006..