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Assessing the Food Intake of Mentally Retarded and Developmentally Disabled AdultsSchool of Home Economics, Tupper Hall, Ohio University, Athens, OH 45701
School of Home Economics, Tupper Hall, Ohio University, Athens, OH 45701
170 Breezewood Common, East Amherst, NY 14051 A comparison of the difficulties and limitations of responding to a food frequency instrument for 44 mentally retarded/developmentally disabled (MR/DD) adults and 49 college students was made. Variables included responses to closed-ended (CE), open-ended frequency (OF), and open-ended quantity (OQ) questions, and frequency of eight behaviors that indicate difficulties in responding to a food frequency questionnaire. There were significant differences in responses be tween the two groups for OF and OQ, with the MR/DD group having more difficulty. The two groups were similar in responses to the CE question, having little difficulty. MR/DD adults may be unable to provide information with regard to quantity and frequency of food intake. Behaviors that may indicate limitations in ability to respond to a food frequency instrument were significantly higher for the MR/DD group. Based on the results of this study it appears that it is possible to gather basic, but not quantitative, dietary information from MR/DD individuals, such as food preferences and whether or not specific foods are eaten.
Family and Consumer Sciences Research Journal, Vol. 19, No. 3,
199-206 (1991) |
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