Assessing Diet Quality in Extension Programs: Methods and Recommendations

Dietary assessment tools, such as 24-hour dietary recall interviews, food frequency questionnaires, screeners, or food records, are self-reported instruments used to measure the quality and/or quantity of food a person consumes. Some dietary assessment tools collect information about an individual's overall diet quality, while other tools may focus on fewer aspects of diet quality, such as fruit and vegetable or fiber intake. Since poor diet quality is a leading risk factor for many chronic diseases like diabetes, heart disease, and some cancers, assessing diet quality appropriately is imperative. The purpose of this publication is to guide Extension professionals in choosing a dietary assessment tool that meets their specific needs.