Evaluating the Reliability of Assessing Home-Packed Food Items Using Digital Photographs and Dietary Log Sheets

ObjectiveTo assess the reliability of manual data entry for home-packed food items by using digital photographs and dietary log sheets.MethodsData from 60 lunches were entered by researcher A and B independently. Researcher B re-entered researcher A’s items within 1 week. Researcher B then re-entered her items 4 weeks from the initial entry point.ResultsThe inter-rater reliability intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was 0.83 for total kilocalories and ranged from 0.75–0.87 for macronutrients. The intra-rater reliability ICC was 0.92 for total kcal and ranged from 0.90–0.92 for macronutrients. The inter-rater ICCs for the 5 selected micronutrients ranged from 0.33–0.83, whereas the intra-rater ICCs for these micronutrients ranged from 0.65–0.98.Conclusions and ImplicationsThis method of data entry is feasible and its reliability is promising for macronutrient investigations. Continued assessment of this method for investigations related to micronutrient content is recommended.