Development of Calcium Food List among Schoolchidren in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Chow, Wen San (2019) Development of Calcium Food List among Schoolchidren in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Final Year Project (Bachelor), Tunku Abdul Rahman University College.

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Abstract

Diet is considered as an important determinant of an individual’s health status. Dietary behaviour is difficult to quantify and it can be intrusive. The low calcium intakes among various population often reported in the cross sectional survey in Malaysia. The presence of inadequate intake of calcium among Malaysian children are of worried since dietary calcium is considered as an essential mineral which is important for the development of skeletal during childhood and it is difficult to assess. Therefore, we systematically developed a calcium food list within the primary schoolchildren in Kuala Lumpur, using data from 3-Day Diet Record (3DDR) from representative sample of 392 school children of Chinese, Malay, Indian and others ethnicity aged 10-11 years. This study is designed to conduct three non-consecutive day 24-hour dietary recall to assess dietary intake of 392 participants aged 10 to 11 years. Based on the result from three non-consecutive day 24- hour dietary recall, the calcium food consumed by the schoolchildren can be categorized into twelve groups, which included milk and dairy product, meat, fish and poultry, legumes and nuts, vegetables, fruits, grains, instant food and beverage, spreads, sauces, oil, snacks and others. When comparing calcium food list in Malaysia with other countries, it can be concluded that the dietary habits of individuals different according to socioeconomic factors, regional customs, traditions and country. Calcium food list developed in other countries not suitable to be used for assessing the calcium intake of schoolchildren in Malaysia due to the multi-ethnic of primary school-aged children. The food items with high and low calcium content are included in the calcium food list as well. This calcium food list is suitable to use to develop FFQ to assess the calcium intake for the schoolchildren in Malaysia.