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4 . 2018

The title: Quality of Life. Health and Nutrition: Atlas

Voprosy pitaniia [Problems of Nutrition]. 2018; 87 (4): 93-95. doi: 10.24411/0042-8833-2018-10047.

This atlas "Quality of Life. Health and Nutrition", was prepared by the Federal Research Centre of Nutrition, Biotechnology and Food Safety and Vision International People Group, in collaboration with the World Health Orga­nization (WHO).

This Russian-English publication presents the findings from the quality of life, health, and nutrition survey of the popula­tion in Russia. The analyses were based on the findings from the 2004-2005 national and the 2014-2015 cross-cultural surveys - the socially significant project of the Research In­stitute of Nutrition RAMS (now the Federal Research Centre of Nutrition, Biotechnology and Food Safety), the WHO and Vision International People Group.

The atlas comprises three parts.

Part I presents the survey background, design and instru­ments, as well as approaches to statistical analysis.

Part II graphically presents the 2005 findings from the quality of life, health, and nutrition of the population in Russia based on the Russia Longitudinal Monitoring Survey (RLMS). For the first time in Russia, the normative data on the quality of life, health, and nutrition for the population of Russia were obtained on the basis of the nationally representative sample.

Part III graphically presents the 2015 findings from the Cross-cultural Quality of Life, Health, and Nutrition Survey of populations in different countries (the findings for Russia are reported) held on the website http://www.visionsurvey.net. For the first time in Russia, an Internet-based system was developed to measure the quality of life, health, and nutrition online.

With the normative values obtained in the 2004-2005 national survey, the 2014-2015 online survey enabled partici­pants to compare and contrast their real-time quality of life, health and functioning parameters with the normative quality of life, health and functioning parameters for Russia.

The book presents the survey instruments with confirmed psychometric properties:

1. The questionnaire to measure the actual food consump­tion designed by the Research Institute of Nutrition Russian Academy of Medical Sciences. The estimation of the actual food consumption was based on the analysis of food con­sumption frequency, which enables researchers to analyse diet patterns, at both the individual and population levels.

2. The Health and Functioning ICF-60 (HF-ICF-60) ques­tionnaire to measure the health and functioning and its short version the Health and Functioning ICF-30 (HF-ICF-30) de­signed by Vision International People Group in collaboration with the WHO and the Research Institute of Nutrition RAMS, is based on The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health: ICF, WHO 2001. The measures draw on the WHO ICF approach, the research that has gone into the development of the measures has been thorough and well carried out. The analytic strategy seems appropriate to the development of such measures.

With good psychometric properties of the HF-ICF-60 and the HF-ICF-30 shown in the surveys, the measures may be useful for national and global monitoring to obtain the objective assessment of health and functioning and to monitor change in health and functioning through changes in lifestyle and diet.

3. The World Health Organization WHOQOL-BREF ques­tionnaire to measure the quality of life.

The HF-ICF-60 and HF-ICF-30 can be combined with the WHOQOL-BREF to map the objective assessment of health and functioning onto the subjective evaluation of quality of life. Therefore, the objective assessment of health and function­ing of the HF-ICF-60 and HF-ICF-30 could be mapped onto the subjective evaluation of quality of life of the WHOQOL-BREF to increase the potential usefulness of the surveys in relation to non-communicable diseases. Combined use of the HF-ICF-60 or the HF-ICF-30 and the WHOQOL-BREF can be especially useful for national and global monitoring and surveillance of implementation of measures to reduce risk factors of non-communicable diseases and to promote healthy lifestyles and healthy diets.

Overall, the statistical analyses were carried out with the use of both classical and modern methods and draw on the WHO approach. The approaches to health promotion and NCD prevention and control fully accord with those of the WHO in the official WHO publications and on WHO website.

The book provides a comprehensive overview on the qual­ity of life, health, and nutrition of the population of Russia across demographic, social, and health-related characteris­tics, and shows the dynamics of the same from 2004-2005 to 2014-2015.

Along with the survey findings, the book presents the de­velopment and use of an Internet-based system, which allows the quality of life, health, and nutrition management through monitoring of these across countries, detecting NCD risk fac­tors, and providing personalized feedback with health promo­tion and disease prevention advice and recommendations.

The publication is aimed at a broad audience of the national and international expert community, it provides up-to-date information in the field of the quality of life, health, and nutri­tion research in populations of Russia and other countries, for policy-making decisions in the health and social sectors. The atlas may be recommended as a tool to increase the effec­tiveness of mass media campaigns aimed to promote health and healthy lifestyles.

Dr Somnath Chatterji

Head of Surveys, Measurement and Analysis, Department of Information, Evidence and Research, World Health Organization Headquarters

All articles in our journal are distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0 license)

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CHIEF EDITOR
CHIEF EDITOR
Viktor A. Tutelyan
Full Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Doctor of Medical Sciences, Professor, Scientific Director of the Federal Research Centre of Nutrition, Biotechnology and Food Safety (Moscow, Russia)

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