ARS | Publication request: Keeping up with the marketplace - updates to the USDA Food and Nutrient Database for Dietary Studies

Submitted to: National Nutrient Databank Conference
Publication Type: Abstract
Publication Acceptance Date: February 12, 2008
Publication Date: May 12, 2008
Citation: Montville, J.B., Ahuja, J.K.C., Heendeniya, K.Y., Omolewa Tomobi, G. 2008. Keeping up with the marketplace: Updates to the USDA Food and Nutrient Database for Dietary Studies [abstract]. 32nd National Nutrient Databank Conference, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, May 12-14, 2008. Program & Abstracts. P39.

Technical Abstract: USDA¿s Food Surveys Research Group develops the Food and Nutrient Database for Dietary Studies (FNDDS) to provide a database of nutrients in current foods for processing and analyzing dietary intakes collected in the What We Eat in America, National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (WWEIA, NHANES). A new version of FNDDS is prepared for each two-year release of the survey. To keep FNDDS current, information reported by survey respondents is monitored for new foods and portion sizes. In addition, to prepare FNDDS 3.0 for the 2005-2006 collection, comprehensive reviews of existing database entries (foods, weights, and recipes) were conducted for selected food categories including fruit juice beverages, fast foods, and some Hispanic foods. Finally, updated nutrient values from the USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 20 (SR20) were evaluated and incorporated into the database. More than 100 food items were added to FNDDS for new foods reported in the survey. Other food items (n>100) were discontinued for products no longer available. Food descriptions were revised for manufacturer name changes and new market terminology (e.g., ground beef labeling terms). A comprehensive review of Puerto Rican foods led to the addition of Spanish terms for many food items. Approximately 2,000 revisions were made to weight data resulting from new package sizes, larger-sized ground beef patties, and changes in fast food items. With the inclusion of choline in SR20, values for total choline were added for all foods in FNDDS, bringing the total number of nutrients in the database to 64. Linkages to SR were updated, including changes in the types of fats/oils used in various commercial foods and home/restaurant-prepared foods. FNDDS 3.0 contains approximately 7,000 food items and 30,000 portion weights, and was used to estimate nutrient intakes for WWEIA, NHANES 2005-2006. By mid-2008 it will be available on the internet via the What¿s In The Foods You Eat Search Tool, and for download from http://www.ars.usda.gov/ba/bhnrc/fsrg.