Describe the population, recall period, and portion detail. Makeform turns the brief into an editable survey of what respondents ate, how much, when, and how it was prepared.
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Sample prompts for the builder
Choose a pattern, adapt it, or send it to the builder.
Audience
Adults reporting everything consumed yesterday
Format
Meal-by-meal recall
Prompt size
274 chars
Example survey structure
Meal-by-meal recall
Which date are you recalling?
What did you eat or drink at this occasion?
Amount and unit
Preparation and additions
Any forgotten items?
Suggested routing tags
Recall complete
Follow-up needed
Repeat round due
Define the period and units so respondents do not mix daily intake with usual habits.
Step 1
Define
population, period, and unit of analysis
Step 2
Recall
foods, drinks, times, and forgotten items
Step 3
Quantify
amounts, units, portions, and leftovers
Step 4
Review
completeness, atypical days, and repeat rounds
Better intake data
A bowl without a size or a meal without a date is hard to interpret. Build these distinctions into the response path.
Name the exact day, week, or usual-intake period in the introduction and question labels.
Show brand, cooking, addition, and leftover questions only after a food is reported.
Pair every quantity with an allowed unit such as grams, cups, pieces, or household measures.
Choose the study pattern
Each method answers different questions. State the unit of analysis before generating fields.
Walk from waking to bedtime with times, items, portions, preparation, and a forgotten-food pass.
Give every entry a date and occasion, repeating one concise structure throughout the period.
Use a stable food list, one frequency scale, usual servings, and conditional subtype questions.
Record shared quantities, household size, food source, guests, and meals away.
Survey workflow
Generate the sequence, standardize key details, test it, and route submissions into your workflow.
Specify population, period, unit of analysis, food categories, portion units, and collection rounds.
Use study-specific foods, serving examples, mutually exclusive frequencies, and helpful local names.
Test on respondents' devices, then inspect missing units, unclear timeframes, and burdensome repetition.
Use respondent IDs and round labels, export results, and flag incomplete recalls for follow-up.
Pick a collection method
Choose between a detailed recent day, prospective records, or a broad view of usual frequency.
Field guide
Use these six blocks to structure responses, adapting food examples and units to the study protocol.
Identity & period
Use a study ID when the protocol calls for coded responses. Capture the recall date and round, adding location only when relevant.
Eating occasions
Ask about one occasion at a time. Time and occasion labels can prompt snacks and drinks missed by a meal-only checklist.
Food description
Ask for type, ingredients, brand when known, cooking method, and additions without forcing respondents to guess.
Portion amount
Offer recognizable units. Separate amount served from amount consumed when leftovers matter, with study-appropriate portion examples.
Logic & completeness
Skip detail questions for foods not consumed. End with forgotten-item prompts and room to explain unusual days or uncertain estimates.
Repeat collection
Repeated recalls need consistent core fields and a clear round label, with follow-up status kept separate from dietary responses.
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Open toolFAQ
Answers for designing intake questionnaires and repeat food records.
It records what people or households consumed during a defined period through recent-item recall, diary entries, or usual frequency. State whether the unit is a person, household, day, or occasion.
Start with ID and reference period. For recalls, capture time, item, amount, unit, preparation, brand or recipe, additions, and relevant leftovers. Add forgotten-item and typical-day checks. Frequency surveys need one scale and usual servings.
Ask for a number and unit together: grams, milliliters, cups, pieces, packages, or household measures. Separate amount served from leftovers when needed. Pilot choices because familiar measures vary.
A 24-hour recall reconstructs one previous day with portion and preparation detail. A food-frequency questionnaire asks how often listed items were usually consumed over a longer period, often with usual serving size. Name the intended method in the prompt.
Yes. Repeat the food-entry structure with date, participant ID, and round. Keep diary questions consistent. Test whether participants should add several occasions together or submit separately.
Organize recalls chronologically, prompt for snacks and drinks, then check water, condiments, sauces, sweeteners, milk, and supplements. Show details only after an item is reported. A completeness prompt does not prove that recall is perfect.
Yes. Makeform provides unlimited free forms and responses. Generate, edit, publish, and collect without a form or response cap. The paid tier removes the Makeform badge.
Pilot wording, period, food examples, units, logic, and repeated entry. Check exports for blank units, ambiguous frequencies, duplicate IDs, and mixed periods. Revise against the protocol.
Turn your protocol into a response path.
