Development and validation of a self-assessment instrument for sodium intake in the population aged 30-44 years in 4th Regional Health, Thailand
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Abstract
Background: Laboratory-based urine tests are the current standard for assessing sodium intake but are complex and costly. This study aimed to develop a valid, self-assessment questionnaire aligned with laboratory findings using a six-step instrument development process.
Objective: To develop and validate a self-assessment instrument for estimating sodium intake among individuals aged 30–44 years.
Materials and methods: The six-step process involved (1) defining sodium intake by reviewing existing research; (2) creating a list of items based on different food types and how they are eaten; (3) deciding on the format and scale for assessment; (4) checking face validity with feedback from expert advisors; (5) evaluating content validity with five experts and calculating the Item-Objective Congruence (IOC); and (6) testing construct and concurrent validity using ROC analysis.
Results: We categorized a total of 157 food items for inclusion. The questionnaire used a checklist format with frequency ratings (1–7 times/day). Content validity yielded IOC values between 0.6 and 1.0, with 151 items retained. Construct validity showed strong alignment with sodium excretion levels, with a cut-off point of 3.46 and an ROC of 93.3%. Of 120 participants, 112 were correctly classified, yielding 92.8% sensitivity, 95.2% specificity, a 6.7% false positive rate, and 86.7% accuracy (95% CI = 0.880-0.987).
Conclusion: The developed self-assessment tool is practical for single-day dietary evaluation and demonstrates high specificity and accuracy. It offers a reliable, cost-effective alternative for assessing sodium intake at the population level.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Personal views expressed by the contributors in their articles are not necessarily those of the Journal of Associated Medical Sciences, Faculty of Associated Medical Sciences, Chiang Mai University.
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