THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA
THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA
Food, Nutrition, and Health
FNH 398
Research Methods in Human Nutrition
Course Description (Calendar)
Process of research; principles and processes in utilizing research. Restricted to students in majors
in the FNH program.
Scheduled Time: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 8:00-9:30 a.m.
Location: Hugh Dempster Pavilion DMP 310, 6245 Agronomy Road
Instructor: Dr. Jennifer Black
Office Hours: Tuesdays & Thursdays 9:30-10:30 (after lecture), or by appointment in FNH 242
Prerequisites: One of FNH 250, FNH 255 and either (a) AGSC/LFS 252 or (b) BIOL 300 or (c)
EPSE 482 or (d) FRST 231 or (e) STAT 200.
Course TAs:
Naseam Ahmadi: naseam@interchange.ubc.ca
Negar Omidakhsh: negar02@interchange.ubc.ca
Penny Yang: pyang05@interchange.ubc.ca
Required Text:
 Leslie Portney and Mary Watkins. Foundations of Clinical Research; Applications to Practice,
3rd edition. 2009. Pearson Prentice Hall.
 Readings listed on syllabus (and additional readings may be posted on Vista)
Clicker Requirement: All students in FNH 398 are required to have access to an I-Clicker that is
registered to their name and Student ID. Please click on the “Register your clicker here” link on the
Vista course website to register your clicker.
Background: “The science of nutrition is the human endeavor to understand how what we eat affects our
health. What kinds of diets are best to prevent chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer, or diabetes? To
what extent can good nutrition reduce stress, prevent memory loss, or even prolong longevity? What diets are
best for infants, toddlers, and children to develop their optimal physical powers and mental faculties? Fuelled
by overwhelming evidence that a significant reduction in the global burden of disease must be nutrition
based, new discoveries are being generated at an explosive rate and are producing major shifts in
understanding. Thrown into this mix is a daily barrage of miraculous health claims and counterclaims
presented by the media and those with vested interests. In this environment, not only is it important for
nutrition graduates to have a mastery of knowledge about nutrition but more importantly, to have the skills
and ability to learn new knowledge, to see things from different perspectives, to critically evaluate
information, to judge what is useful and what is not, and to be able to communicate and apply this
knowledge. Without these skills of critical evaluation one’s knowledge will become dated very quickly.”
(adapted with permission from CM Skeaff, Professor, University of Otago, New Zealand)
FNH 398 Syllabus 2012
1
THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA
Course Aims: The purpose of this course is to introduce the student to research principles and
processes that will allow them to interpret, critically evaluate, and apply research in the nutritional
sciences.
Course Objectives
By the end of FNH 398, students are expected to be able to:
1. Describe the importance of research and how research informs professional practice.
2. Critically read and interpret the nutrition research literature and evaluate the quality of research
studies.
3. Explain the characteristics of the different research paradigms used in nutrition research
including qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods. For each paradigm, identify strengths,
limitations, and indications for use.
4. Describe the various stages of the nutrition research process and what tasks need to be
completed during each (conceptualization, reviewing the literature, planning and design,
methodology, data analysis, interpretation, dissemination, re-conceptualizing).
5. Describe the principles underlying ethics in research including “informed consent”.
6. Explain the key types of validity and reliability, how they are assessed and their importance for
research.
7. Interpret basic statistical models used in nutrition research and explain core concepts needed for
applying descriptive and inferential statistics to quantitative data.
8. Describe the uses, strengths and limitations of the following research approaches: qualitative
studies, cross-sectional studies, case-control studies, cohort studies, and randomized control
trials.
9. Critically read current nutrition literature (and know where to find it).
Course Evaluation
1. Assignment #1: TCPS 2 Ethics tutorial
2. Assignment #2: Searching the literature
3. Assignment #3: Quality criteria checklist assignment
4. On-line quizzes (3 @ 5 % each)
5. Graded In class clicker quiz questions
6. Class (clicker) participation
7. Mid-term exam
8. Final exam
FNH 398 Syllabus 2012
2%
10%
10%
15%
5%
3%
25%
30%
2
THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA
Expectations
Absentee Policy: We expect you to be present and prepared for all class meetings. In the event that
you are unable to attend a scheduled class meeting because of illness or emergency you are
responsible for any material presented in class.
 UBC’s policy regarding illness and accommodations are available at
http://www.students.ubc.ca/coursesreg/exams/exam-policies-accommodations/
 You are expected to contact the instructor and submit a medical note/certificate of illness or
appropriate documentation for any absence that requires accommodation.
Assignments & Readings:
 All assigned reading is to be done prior to class meetings in order to be prepared for class
discussions. In-class clicker questions will on occasion be used to assess comprehension and
critical analysis from assigned readings.
 All assignments must be handed in on time. Assignments should be handed in both on Vista
and with a hard copy submitted in class. The Vista log will confirm that the assignment was
submitted on time.
 Any assignment turned in after the due date will be graded late and points will automatically
deducted. A 10% penalty will be given per day late.
 All assignments should have page numbers, be stapled together with your student ID at the
top of each page.
Online Quizzes:
 These MUST be completed on the dates scheduled. If not, a score of zero is assigned. We
recommend that you note these dates now, and don’t forget them!!
E-MAIL:
You may notice that the instructor's e-mail address was not listed on the first page of the syllabus.
Basically, this is because we've found that face-to-face communication is much more effective.
There are several reasons why this is the case:
1) When someone asks a question by e-mail, it’s very difficult to clarify the question, and
provide the appropriate answer (or even better, to help you discover it yourself).
2) Even if the question is clear, it takes a lot of time to type out a complete answer – and it
means that we can’t assess whether you’ve understood the content or not (or try to help you
answer the question for yourself). And it also means that other forms of communication
(such as a diagram) aren’t possible.
3) There are over 150 people in this course. If you have a question, chances are very good that
someone else will have the same question, and will also benefit from an explanation.
4) Sometimes students think it’s quicker and easier to fire off an e-mail rather than trying to
locate the information themselves (e.g., When is the midterm?). (We’re sure none of you
have ever done this, but some “other students” do!)
However, in the case of an emergency (such as illness or prolonged absence from class), or to make
an appointment outside of office hours, the instructor can be reached at 604 822-6869 or
j.black@ubc.ca (NOT VIA VISTA EMAIL).
FNH 398 Syllabus 2012
3
THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA
Statement on Academic Integrity
Please be aware that plagiarism or cheating of any kind will be cause for “no credit” on the
assignment, and possible failure in the course.
Academic integrity is fundamental to the research process, so is highlighted here. UBC’s policy on
academic integrity is available at: http://vpacademic.ubc.ca/integrity/. When academic integrity is
breached (most commonly by plagiarism or cheating), this constitutes academic misconduct.
Plagiarism is defined by the UBC Calendar as “intellectual theft (that) occurs when an individual
submits or presents the oral or written work of another person as his or her own.” (The University
of British Columbia. Calendar 2008/09, p.59). Plagiarism is a growing concern at UBC, as
indicated in the following statement from the website of UBC’s Vice President Academic:
“Evidence from UBC and elsewhere suggests that plagiarism is increasing -- complaints from
students and professors about the problem are rising. The Internet has made plagiarising easier.
For example, there are many places from which to copy or purchase material, and simply cutting
and pasting text from Internet sources directly into papers is relatively easy.
Plagiarism is difficult to detect. In the past there was no systematic way to compare student
papers to the work of others to uncover plagiarism. It was only discovered when, generally by
coincidence, text in a paper was recognized as coming from another source known to the reader.
Fortunately, the Internet, which has made plagiarising easier, also provides a system for possible
detection. As one part of an institutional response to the issue of plagiarism, UBC has subscribed
to an electronic service called TurnItIn. While the focus is primarily on this Internet-based
service, information is also provided about the larger context in which plagiarism must be
addressed, including UBC Policies on Plagiarism and suggestions on Reducing Plagiarism.”
If you have not already done so, you should familiarize yourself with UBC’s policies, and the steps
you can take to avoid plagiarism. The UBC Library has an excellent site on plagiarism, with links to
some good online tutorials: http://www.library.ubc.ca/home/plagiarism/.
Although plagiarism of written work can now be detected through services such as TurnItIn, it is
more difficult to detect situations when students use the work of others (including their fellow
students) when completing on-line quizzes and assignments. Studying with others or discussing
issues with them is completely legitimate and is encouraged; however, collaborating with others
while completing on-line assignments is not, nor is informing others of what the questions were.
Both providing this information to someone else, or using that information, are considered cheating
and would constitute academic misconduct.
Accordingly, the first item on each online quiz or assignment in this course will contain the
following statement: “I am completing this quiz/assignment independently and will not disclose its
contents to other students”. You must select “Yes” to continue.
FNH 398 Syllabus 2012
4
THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA
Tentative Course Topics and Schedule
KEY TOPICS/ACTIVITIES
Introduction and course overview
READINGS
Chapter 1
(Blumberg, Heaney et al.
2010)
Overview of research design and the
language of research
(Porter and Matel 1998)
Types of variables; sample and population;
criteria for causation
(Potischman and Weed
1999)
1/17
All clickers should now be registered.
Tools for searching the literature.
Chapter 31
1/19
Katherine Miller, Reference Librarian
Woodward Library, UBC
Ethics
WEEK
Date
1
1/5
2
1/10
2
3
3
1/12
Assignment #1 due today: Completion of
Tri-Council Tutorial (submitted through
VISTA and hard copy in class)
4
1/24
Animal models
Chapter 7
(Gray and Gray 2002)
Chapter 3
(Nestle 2001)
(Baker 2008)
Elizabeth Novak
4
1/26
Sampling and generalizability.
Chapter 8
Online Quiz #1 available TODAY on Vista
5
1/31
Levels of measurement; introduction to
reliability and validity
Assignment #2 due today: Searching the
Scientific Literature
5
2/2
Chapter 4 and 5
(Burrows, Martin et al.
2010)
Reliability and validity continued.
Chapter 6
Jovana Kovacevic: Insights about validity
from the food microbiology lab
(Guenther, Reedy et al.
2008)
6
2/7
Statistics refresher: measures of central
tendency and variability; normal curve;
descriptive statistics
Chapter 17
6
2/9
Inferential statistics. Central Limit Theory;
tests of significance; P-Values, T-tests,
multiple and linear regression, sample size
estimates, ANOVA, Type 1 and 2 errors
Chapter 18
FNH 398 Syllabus 2012
5
THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA
WEEK
Date
KEY TOPICS/ACTIVITIES
READINGS
7
2/14
Inferential statistics continued
Chapter 18
Online Quiz #2 available TODAY on Vista.
(recommended additional
readings: Chapters 19-25)
Practice-Based Evidence in Nutrition
Review PEN website:
Tamar Kafka
http://www.pennutrition.c
om/aboutpen.aspx
7
2/16
Mid-Term Break: No class on Feb 21 or Feb 23
8
2/28
Introduction to surveys and descriptive
research
Chapter 15
8
MIDTERM EXAM
9
3/1
3/6
Surveys and descriptive research continued
Chapter 15
(Bedford and Barr 2005)
9
3/8
Research designs: Epidemiological studies
(cohort; case-control)
Chapter 13
(Bruemmer, Harris et al.
2009)
10
3/13
Epidemiological studies continued
Chapter 13
10
3/15
Epidemiological studies continued
Chapter 28 (page 659-671)
(Kim, Lim et al. 2009)
11
3/20
Epidemiological studies continued
(Cho, Chen et al. 2006)
11
3/22
Chapter 9 (page 174-185)
12
3/27
Research designs: Experiments and
randomized controlled trials
Experiments and randomized trials
continued
Quiz #3 available TODAY on Vista
12
3/29
Qualitative Research
Chapter 14 (page 306-312)
(Harris, Gleason et al. 2009)
13
4/3
Meta-analyses; systematic reviews; levels of (Autier and Gandini 2007;
evidence
Moher and Tricco 2008)
13
4/5
Hot topics in human nutrition research
Knowledge translation and discussion of
contemporary nutrition research; review.
(McMahon, Green et al.
2006)
(Akobeng 2005)
Raja Elango
Assignment #3 due today: Quality criteria
checklist assignment.
FNH 398 Syllabus 2012
6
THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA
Course Readings:
Akobeng, A. K. (2005). "Understanding systematic reviews and meta-analysis." Archives of disease in childhood 90(8):
845-848.from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16040886.
Autier, P. and S. Gandini (2007). "Vitamin D supplementation and total mortality: a meta-analysis of randomized
controlled trials." Archives of internal medicine 167(16): 1730-1737.from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17846391.
Baker, D. H. (2008). "Animal models in nutrition research." The Journal of nutrition 138(2): 391-396.from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18203909.
Bedford, J. L. and S. I. Barr (2005). "Diets and selected lifestyle practices of self-defined adult vegetarians from a
population-based sample suggest they are more 'health conscious'." Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act 2(1): 4.from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&dopt=Citation&list_uids=15829014.
Blumberg, J., R. P. Heaney, et al. (2010). "Evidence-based criteria in the nutritional context." Nutrition reviews 68(8):
478-484.from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20646225.
Bruemmer, B., J. Harris, et al. (2009). "Publishing Nutrition Research: A Review of Epidemiologic Methods." Journal
of the American Dietetic Association 109(10): 1728-1737.from http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B758G4X9F7CD-G/2/fb92d62917205cfba3d36655c8568ce0.
Burrows, T. L., R. J. Martin, et al. (2010). "A systematic review of the validity of dietary assessment methods in
children when compared with the method of doubly labeled water." Journal of the American Dietetic Association
110(10): 1501-1510.from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20869489.
Cho, E., W. Y. Chen, et al. (2006). "Red meat intake and risk of breast cancer among premenopausal women." Arch
Intern Med 166(20): 2253-2259.from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&dopt=Citation&list_uids=17101944.
Gray, G. E. and L. K. Gray (2002). "Evidence-based medicine: applications in dietetic practice." J Am Diet Assoc
102(9): 1263-1272; discussion 1272.from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&dopt=Citation&list_uids=12792624.
Guenther, P. M., J. Reedy, et al. (2008). "Evaluation of the Healthy Eating Index-2005." Journal of the American
Dietetic Association 108(11): 1854-1864.from http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B758G-4TT89NHG/2/c88c0b31e9e0f7e5a1415384df44ac52.
Harris, J. E., P. M. Gleason, et al. (2009). "An introduction to qualitative research for food and nutrition professionals."
J Am Diet Assoc 109(1): 80-90.from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&dopt=Citation&list_uids=19103326.
Kim, J., S. Y. Lim, et al. (2009). "Fatty fish and fish omega-3 fatty acid intakes decrease the breast cancer risk: a casecontrol study." BMC Cancer 9: 216.from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&dopt=Citation&list_uids=19566923.
McMahon, J. A., T. J. Green, et al. (2006). "A controlled trial of homocysteine lowering and cognitive performance."
The New England journal of medicine 354(26): 2764-2772.from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16807413.
Moher, D. and A. C. Tricco (2008). "Issues related to the conduct of systematic reviews: a focus on the nutrition field."
Am J Clin Nutr 88(5): 1191-1199.from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&dopt=Citation&list_uids=18996852.
Nestle, M. (2001). "Food company sponsorship of nutrition research and professional activities: a conflict of interest?"
Public Health Nutr 4(5): 1015-1022.from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&dopt=Citation&list_uids=11784415.
Porter, C. and J. L. S. Matel (1998). "Are we Making Decisions Based on Evidence?" Journal of the American Dietetic
Association 98(4): 404-407.from http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B758G-48B4S1N2V/2/c4d5e7d4b761cc06a1e225fbd24adf36.
Potischman, N. and D. L. Weed (1999). "Causal criteria in nutritional epidemiology." Am J Clin Nutr 69(6): 1309S1314S.from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&dopt=Citation&list_uids=10359231.
FNH 398 Syllabus 2012
7
THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA
Assignment Summaries
Note: The full instructions for these assignments will be posted on Vista
Assignment #1: Completion of the Introductory Tutorial for the Tri-Council Policy
Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans (TCPS 2: CORE).
This tutorial can be accessed at: http://pre.ethics.gc.ca/english/tutorial/. Be sure to log in after
creating a username and password so that you can complete the tutorial over more than one session.
When you have successfully completed the tutorial, print your certificate of completion and save an
electronic version. Turn this in by JANUARY 19, 2011 (both a hard copy IN CLASS, and an
electronic version via Vista). Those who submit their certificate by the deadline will receive 2%
towards their course grade. Those who do not submit their certificate by the deadline will receive a
score of zero.
Assignment #2: Searching the Scientific Literature
1. Select a topic and develop a clear question using the PICO framework related to your selected
topic.
2. Conduct a “Medline” search to identify studies that have examined your research question. Please
hand in a print out of your search history.
3. Print and submit the abstracts for 3 research articles that you identified through your search and that
are most relevant to your research question.
4. Journal Alert: Attach the confirmation that you received from a peer reviewed journal that shows that
you have you successfully signed up for a journal alert or electronic table of content
Assignment #3: Critically Reviewing the Literature using the Quality Criteria Checklist
1. For each of the primary research papers assigned in the second half of the course:
 Abstract the paper as illustrated in the ADA Evidence Analysis Process provided by the
American Dietetic Association Evidence:
http://www.adaevidencelibrary.com/topic.cfm?cat=3210
o An example of an abstracted article is posted here:
http://www.adaevidencelibrary.com/worksheet.cfm?worksheet_id=250517
 Fill out the Quality Criteria Checklist (a template will be provided on Vista).
 You should read the article and fill out the checklist in advance of the class in which the
research paper will be discussed. To facilitate discussion, you should bring your
checklist to class with you. Questions may be asked in class (and will contribute to your
In-Class Clicker Quiz Grade).
2. For the research paper on Experiments and Randomized Trials, you will need to submit
the Quality Criteria Checklist in class and on Vista. This completed checklist will be
graded.
FNH 398 Syllabus 2012
8