The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

Abstract #49027

Bilge Pakiz, EdD, Shirley Flatt, MS, Kathleen C. Mills, Lindsay Weissbach, and Cheryl L. Rock, PhD, RD. Cancer Prevention and Control Program, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, 0901, La Jolla, CA 92093-0901, 858-622-1731, x2232, bpakiz@ucsd.edu

This study examines the effects of a diet intervention on quality of life of 54 male and 23 female participants (ages 31-81) who were part of a feasibility study seeking to determine whether individuals who have had a polyp removed from their colon could change their diets in order to reduce the risk for recurrence of colorectal adenomas. At baseline and study end (12 months) participants completed the Quality of Life (QOL) Questionnaire, a modified Quality of Life Factors Questionnaire utilized in the Polyp Prevention Trial (PPT) (Corle et al, 2001). The QOL questionnaire had good inter-item reliability (Cronbach's a=0.8). The nine domains relating to diet and health identified in the PPT were also assessed (a=0.2-0.9). Preliminary analysis found no differences in total QOL scores for the intervention and the control groups at study end, as well as between baseline and 12 months. According to data from repeated 24-hour dietary recalls, the intervention group exhibited a significantly higher consumption of vegetables, fruit, low-fat dairy products, fiber, and calcium. The dietary intake data also showed that they had a significantly higher intake of lutein, b-cryptoxanthin, lycopene, a-carotene, and b-carotene compared to the controls. This suggests that even though the intervention group participants made significant changes in their food choices and eating behavior, they did not feel burdened by these changes in their day-to-day lives. Details of the QOL and implications for dietary intervention and disease prevention will be further discussed.

Learning Objectives: The participants in the session will be able to

• Understand and critically think about the effect of changing one's diet for disease prevention on individual's quality of life.
• Assess the behavioral outcomes of implementing a diet high in vegetables, fiber, and calcium, and low in fat, on individuals who have had a polyp removed from their colon.
• Develop and utilize a measure assessing quality of life in studies that have a diet intervention component.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.