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Epidemiology and Genomics Research Program

Diet History Questionnaire: Response Rates/Length of Questionnaire

Alternate Version Available

You are viewing the web site for the original version of the DHQ. The latest version for the U.S. is the DHQ III; however, DHQ III does not yet have a Canadian version. The Canadian version of DHQ II is still available.

Based on pilot study research from about 400 individuals in one study and about 1000 in another, the response rates for the DHQ varied from 70-85%. In both these studies, the DHQ response rates were not statistically different than those from shorter FFQs. Based on the first study listed below, the questionnaire takes about one hour to complete.

Subar AF, Ziegler RG, Thompson FE, Johnson CC, Weissfeld JL, Reding D, Kavounis KH, Hayes RB for the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal, and Ovarian Cancer Screen Trial Investigators. Is shorter always better? Relative importance of questionnaire length and cognitive ease on response rates and data quality for two dietary questionnairesAm J Epidemiol 2001;153(4):404-9.

Subar AF, Thompson FE, Kipnis V, Midthune D, Hurwitz P, McNutt S, McIntosh A, Rosenfeld S. Comparative Validation of the Block, Willett, and National Cancer Institute Food Frequency Questionnaires: The Eating at America's Table StudyAm J Epidemiol 2001;154:1089-99.