Curricular Unit:			Code:
Assessment Methods of Food Intake			845MAIA
Year:	Level:	Course:	Credits:
1	Undergraduate	Nutrition Sciences	5 ects
Learning Period:		Language of Instruction:	Total Hours:
		Portuguese/English	65
Learning Outcomes of the Curricular Unit:
This Curricular Unit aims to foster, from a continuous and sustained approach, the following objectives: - To develop in students the knowledge and ability to properly use tools for the assessment of dietary intake of individuals and populations. - To develop students' skills techniques for the use and application of the different methods to assess dietary and nutritional intake in different contexts. In this context, at the end of the course the student should be able to: - Have theoretical and practical knowledge on the different methods of assessing dietary intake; - Be able to assess dietary intake in different population subgroups and report those results; - Be able to adapt the methods of assessing dietary intake according to the methodological resources available.
Syllabus:
Food balance sheets; Household Budget Surveys; Food diaries; 24-hours recalls; Food frequency questionnaires; Biochemical indicators of nutritional intake
Demonstration of the Syllabus Coherence with the Curricular Unit's Objectives:
Aiming to achieve the learning objectives set out, of which highlights the ability to assess dietary intake of individuals and populations in different contexts, the syllabus focus on the different levels of assessment of dietary intake (national, familial and individual levels) and their adaptation to several population subgroups, allowing students to correctly apply the various methods and suit them to the targets.
Teaching Methodologies (Including Evaluation):
The sessions are theoretical complemented by practical sessions (totaling 4 hours weekly) based on oral lectures (use of data projectors), with inclusion of practical examples and practical working groups. Knowledge will be assessed continuously and periodically through two evaluation moments. Each frequency will have a weighting of 50%. The moments of periodic evaluation will be schedule by the teacher at the beginning of the school year and will last two hours each. Frequencies will consist of multiple choice questions and short development questions. The final grade is the result of the approval in the various units of credit.
Demonstration of the Coherence between the Teaching Methodologies and the Learning Outcomes:
The teaching methodology combines the oral methodology (oral lectures), essential to acquire basic structuring knowledge on the several methods of assessing dietary intake, their advantages and limitations, and the practical work, essential to put into practice these skills and develop the correct techniques for their practical application.
Reading:
Cameron ME and van Staveren WA. Manual on methodology for food consumption studies. Oxford: Oxford Medical Publications 1998. Willett WC. Nutritional Epidemiology. 2nd ed. New York: Oxford University Press 1998. Gibney MJ, Margetts BM, Kearney JM and Arab L. (editors). Public Health Nutrition. Oxford: Blackwell Science 2004.