Canadian Food Consumption Surveys: A Federal- Provincial Partnership

The last national dietary survey of the Canadian population, the Nutrition Canada Survey, was conducted in 1970-72. Data from this survey have been used extensively over the years by various levels of government and non-governmental agencies for policies, programs, health risk assessments, educational and other purposes. However, due to major changes in our food supply and in the eating habits of Canadians, these data are becoming outdated. As the importance of healthy eating habits are being recognized in the maintenance of health and in the prevention of chronic diseases, the Canadian Heart Health Initiative, a coalition of federal and provincial health representatives, proposed a partnership model in obtaining nutritional data at the national and provincial levels. Two of the federal partners in these provincial surveys are the Nutrition Research Division and the Bureau of Biostatistics of the Health Protection Branch, Health Canada. Our contribution includes assistance in the development of the protocol and the dietary assessment instruments and in the implementation of the survey. We are responsible for the data entry processing and the statistical analysis. The dietary assessment methods used in these surveys include 24-hr recalls conducted at the respondent's home by trained interviewers, nutrient supplement and food frequency questionnaires. Furthermore, each province can develop a questionnaire on topics of interest to them such as knowledge and attitudes towards healthy eating practices and physical activity. Some basic socio-demographic questions and anthropometric measurements complete the questionnaire set. Under the Canadian Heart Health Initiative, six provinces undertook or are currently undertaking food consumption surveys. Based on our experience gained from these surveys on Canadian adults, ongoing research on dietary assessment methods directed to school-aged children aged 6 to 17 years old is under way with our provincial partners. Many similarities exist between Canadians and Americans with respect to eating habits. Why, then, would one want to conduct a Canadian food consumption survey? What are the differences between the Canadian and U.S. food consumption surveys? This presentation will present results from some provincial surveys and, in doing so, try to answer these questions. The federal approach to creating partnerships with each province makes the Canadian food consumption surveys different from the NFCS and NHANES surveys. The current approach is based on an earlier survey performed by the Department of National Health from 1970-72. This survey, called the Nutrition Canada Survey, was the first national dietary survey of the Canadian population and involved interviewing approximately 13,000 individuals of all ages across five regions, namely, the Atlantic region, Quebec, Ontario, Prairies and British Columbia. Data from this survey have been widely used over the past two decades. However, the data is out-of-date because of major changes in the food supply and in the eating habits of Canadians. To remedy this situation, several governmental and non-governmental organizations proposed completing another national survey but the commitment and the financial support were scarce. These problems were circumvented by adopting a model used by the Canadian Heart Health Initiative (CHHI) in conducting provincial food consumption surveys.