Careful consideration of the validity and reliability of methods intended to assess dietary intake is central to the robustness of nutrition research. A dietary assessment method with high validity is capable of providing useful measurement for a given purpose and context. More specifically, a method with high validity is well grounded in theory; its performance is consistent with that theory; and it is precise, dependable, and accurate within specified performance standards. Assessing the extent to which dietary assessment methods possess these characteristics can be difficult due to the complexity of dietary intake, as well as difficulties capturing true intake.
Careful consideration of the validity and reliability of methods intended to assess dietary intake is central to the robustness of nutrition research. A dietary assessment method with high validity is capable of providing useful measurement for a given purpose and context. More specifically, a method with high validity is well grounded in theory; its performance is consistent with that theory; and it is precise, dependable, and accurate within specified performance standards. Assessing the extent to which dietary assessment methods possess these characteristics can be difficult due to the complexity of dietary intake, as well as difficulties capturing true intake.