HBG603 - EPIDEMIOLOGY of NUTRITIONAL DISEASES

Course Name Code Semester Theory
(hours/week)		 Application
(hours/week)		 Credit ECTS
EPIDEMIOLOGY of NUTRITIONAL DISEASES HBG603 2nd Semester 2 0 2 4
PrequisitesBÄ°S 605-Biostatistics should be completed
Course languageTurkish
Course typeMust 
Mode of DeliveryFace-to-Face 
Learning and teaching strategiesLecture
Discussion
Question and Answer
 
Instructor (s)Doç.Dr. Tülay BaÄŸcı Bosi (PhD) 
Course objectiveIn this course, it is aimed for the students to gain skills in order to decide and apply appropriate research methods in nutrition studies and to interpret the results of the researches accurately. 
Learning outcomes
  1. Knows basic information about healthy nutrition and principles of public health approach. Knows basic epidemiological study methods and principles.
  2. Plans, analyses and reports Epidemiological studies to determine the nutritional status of the population. Evaluates and monitors the nutritional status of the community
  3. Defines evidence-based scientific epidemiological and statistical methods that can be used in research on nutrition. Plans studies on the factors of nutrition-related diseases seen in the community and obtains evidence-based results. Epidemiological studies reveal the prevalence of nutrition-related diseases in the community according to person, place and time characteristics.
  4. Related to nutritional diseases; knows the application methods of ecological, cross-sectional, cohort, case-control and experimental study methods in the field of nutrition, and carries out these studies in clinical and community. Carries out epidemiological studies that can measure the factors and consequences of diseases caused by nutrition. It shows the power, consistency, specificity, bias sources and confounding factors of the study with statistical methods. Knows sampling methods and sampling used in epidemiological studies on nutritional diseases. Calculates the power of the sample
  5. Shows the nutritional problems seen in the community-risk groups with epidemiological studies. Develops intervention methods and recommendations according to the results of the study. It works with policy makers and decision makers to implement the interventions and recommendations developed to solve nutritional problems in the community.
  6. Develops hypotheses in order to determine and/or improve the nutritional level of the community. Plans, conducts and analyses subject-specific research, interprets the results and writes the report
  7. Plans epidemiological studies to measure the effectiveness of interventions applied in community nutrition. Measures the effectiveness of the intervention and develops further interventions. Provides evidence base data for the National Dietary Guidelines.
  8. Knows and acts in accordance with scientific and professional ethical principles in all kinds of academic and social studies, including studies in the field of nutrition.
Course ContentImportance of epidemiological methods in nutritional research, Characteristics of nutrition research, study design, sampling, study size and power, Measuring exposure and outcomes in diet-disease relationship, Measuring bias sources in nutritional research, Epidemiological study types in nutrition, ROC curve and anthropometric assessment, Error sources in assessment of nutritional status, planning validation studies in nutritional research, Biomarkers as measures for the assessment of nutritional status, Interpretation of association, result of nutritional epidemiological studies 
References1. Oxford Textbook of Public Health (Eds. Detels R., Beaglehole R., Lansang MA, Gulliford M) Oxford University Press, 2011 (ISBN: :978-0-19-969347-4).
2. http://www.who.int/en/.
3. http://www.who.int/childgrowth/software/en/.
4. WHO Child Growth Standards, WHO, Department of Nutrition for Health and Development, 2006.
5. Tezcan S. Epidemiyoloji, Tıbbi Araştırmaların Yöntem Bilimi,Hacettepe Halk Sağlığı Vakfı, Yayın No: 92/1, Ankara, 1992.
6. Langseth L. Nutritional Epidemiology Possibilities and Limitations, ILSI EUROPE CONCISE MONOGRAPH SERIES, ILSI Europe, 1993. 

Course outline weekly

WeeksTopics
Week 1Importance of epidemiological methods in nutritional research Characteristics of nutrition research
Week 2Study design: sampling, study size and power Measuring exposure and outcomes
Week 3Measuring bias sources in nutritional research
Week 4Measuring diet-disease ( exposure-outcome) associations
Week 5Ecological, cross-sectional, base-line studies in nutrition
Week 6Midterm exam
Week 7Prospective and retrospective cohort nutritional studies
Week 8Case control and intervention studies in nutrition
Week 9ROC curve and anthropometric assessment
Week 10Error sources in assessment of nutritional status
Week 11Midterm exam
Week 12Planning validation studies in nutritional research
Week 13Statistical methods used in nutritional research
Week 14Biomarkers as measures for the assessment of nutritional status
Week 15Interpretation of association, result of nutritional epidemiological studies
Week 16Final exam

Assesment methods

Course activitiesNumberPercentage
Attendance00
Laboratory00
Application00
Field activities00
Specific practical training00
Assignments00
Presentation210
Project00
Seminar210
Midterms230
Final exam150
Total100
Percentage of semester activities contributing grade succes650
Percentage of final exam contributing grade succes150
Total100

WORKLOAD AND ECTS CALCULATION

Activities Number Duration (hour) Total Work Load
Course Duration (x14) 14 2 28
Laboratory 0 0 0
Application000
Specific practical training000
Field activities000
Study Hours Out of Class (Preliminary work, reinforcement, ect)13678
Presentation / Seminar Preparation144
Project000
Homework assignment000
Midterms (Study duration)236
Final Exam (Study duration) 144
Total Workload3119120

Matrix Of The Course Learning Outcomes Versus Program Outcomes

D.9. Key Learning OutcomesContrubition level*
12345
1. Explains basic information about healthy nutrition.   X 
2. Adopts public health approach related to healthy nutrition.    X 
3. Explains the importance of interdisciplinary work on adequate and balance nutrition issues.   X 
4. Defines scientific research methods related to nutrition and the epidemiological and statistical approaches that can be used in these researches.    X
5. Uses theoretical and practical knowledge to determine the nutrition status of the community.   X 
6. Defines the most prevalent nutritional problems in the community, promotes solutions using his/her knowledge and skills and proposes recommendations for policy/decision makers.    X
7. Knows the nutritional needs of the priority and vulnerable groups of the community and develops recommendations for the prevention of the prevalent diseases.    X
8. Develops hypotheses, plans and conducts research, interprets the results and writes reports in order to determine and/or improve the nutritional level of the community.   X 
9. Works with other health-related fields to improve the nutritional status of the population.    X
10. Evaluates nutrition-related improvements at the national and global levels.   X 
11. Knows and acts in accordance with scientific and professional ethical principles in academic and community-based studies in the field of nutrition.   X 
12. Conducts research on priority topics in the field of nutrition, presents and prepares for publication.   X 

*1 Lowest, 2 Low, 3 Average, 4 High, 5 Highest