IUNA Irish Universities Nutrition Alliance National Teens Food Survey Database – Intake and Exposure Datasets

The Irish Universities Nutrition Alliance National Teens’ Food Survey 2006 (NTFS) was a cross-sectional study conducted between September 2005 and September 2006. The survey was planned and carried out by the nutrition units in University College Cork and University College Dublin, which are a part of the Irish Universities Nutrition Alliance (IUNA). The aim of this survey is to establish a nationally representative database of food consumption in teenagers aged 13-18 years. The data generated would be used to cater to both the nutrition and food safety issues of relevance to the development and implementation of public health policy, food safety risk assessment and the needs of the food industry in terms of compliance. Apart from the food consumption, data regarding weight, lifestyle, physical activities, food recipes and choices were collected.

For the IUNA Teens’ Survey 2006, teenagers aged 13-17 years (224 males, 217 females) were selected from 32 secondary schools throughout the Republic of Ireland. The database of secondary schools available from the Department of Education and Science was used to select the schools for the survey. Schools were randomly selected from secondary, vocational and comprehensive/community schools in a manner that the final sample had equal representation, meaning that the percentage of teenagers surveyed attending each of the categories of schools was equal to the percentage of children attending each of these categories of schools according to the database. 

Trained nutritionists carried out the Irish Universities Nutrition Alliance National Teens’ Food Survey. Upon consent from the selected schools’ principal, introductory letters and information brochures were provided to the guardians of the students. A seven-day food diary was used to collect food and beverage intake information. The surveyors made a total of four visits to the respondents during the seven-day survey period. The survey participants were requested to note down detailed information about the amount and types of all foods, beverages and supplements consumed over the seven-day period and cooking method used, the brand name of the consumed food, packaging size and type, recipes and flavours. Additionally, data on each eating and drinking occasion, the respondents’ definition of each eating or drinking occasion, location of preparation and source of the mean were also collected.

Established standard food weighing protocols, photographic food atlas and manufacturer’s information were used for recording the data. The questionnaire also included questions about the teen’s health and lifestyle and the parents’ health. Moreover, physical activity and eating behaviour, along with anthropometric measurements (weight, height, waist and hip circumference and leg length), were measured for both the teenagers and their parents. Customised computer software was used for data recording and processing, and the databases were finally created.