Assessing Your Usual Food Intake: The Three-Day Food Diary

What is a Three-Day Food Diary?

A Three-Day Food Diary is simply a complete list of ALL foods and beverages that have been consumed over a three-day period. And when we say complete list, we mean complete! Everything that enters your mouth should be written down including sips, nibbles, tastes and schmidgens. It is important to carry your diary with you and record foods and beverages as you consume them. Research shows we have a short memory for foods we eat, so we ask you to not rely on memory but instead record as you go so we can get the most accurate information on your dietary intake.

What information should be included in a three-day food diary?
You will be given specific forms on which to record your three-day food record. A research dietitian will instruct you on how to fill out the forms and tell you which three consecutive days to record your intake. The following information should always be recorded in your food diary:

• Time you consumed the food, beverage, meal, snack or nibble
• Place where you ate
• Food Item- being as specific as possible by writing down brand names, food preparation methods and if anything was added to the food such as salt, mustard, margarine, cream, etc.
• Amount consumed

What does a three-day food record tell us?
A research dietitian will enter your information from your 3-day record into a computer software program called Nutrition Data System for Research software (NDS-R), a high-powered nutrient analysis program developed by the University of Minnesota. The software program calculates an estimate of your daily dietary intake and provides information on your intake of 132 different nutrients! Different studies focus on different nutrients. In some studies we may want to know, on average, how many calories you are consuming each day. In other studies we may focus on your average intake of micronutrients such as calcium or folate.

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