Dietary Information Collected in the SWS

Information about the diets of women and children in the SWS is collected at different stages of the survey. We use three methods of assessing diet. A food frequency questionnaire is used to record how often a set list of foods and drinks are consumed. At some stages food diaries have also been completed. The diaries consist of blank pages on which everything eaten and drunk is recorded. Instead of thinking about food eaten in the recent past, diaries are filled in as the food and drinks are consumed throughout the day. For most of the 6-month old babies we also completed a 24-hour recall, resembling a food diary. This is a list of all the foods and drinks, and the amounts consumed by the baby over the previous day.

We have been thrilled by the level of support that we have had from the families involved in the SWS in our collection of the dietary information, and we thank all of you who have put so much time and effort into the interviews, and into filling in the food diaries.

SWS Dietary Data

Who From	Type of Information	Number
Who interviewed BEFORE Pregnancy	Food Frequency Questionnaire Food Diary	12,572 8,089
Who interviewed in EARLY Pregnancy	Food Frequency Questionnaire Food Diary	2,226 1,986
Who interviewed in LATE Pregnancy	Food Frequency Questionnaire	2,597
6 months Old	Food Frequency Questionnaire 24-hour Recall	2,010 2,010
12 months Old	Food Frequency Questionnaire	2,875
3 Years Old	Food Frequency Questionnaire Food Diary	2,625 1,292
6-7 Year Olds	Food Frequency Questionnaire	2,027
8-9 Year Olds	Food Frequency Questionnaire	1,213
11-13 Year Olds	Food Frequency Questionnaire	1,148
17-19 Year Olds	Food Frequency Questionnaire	444