Skip to main content

Table 1 Scoring method for items in the Australian Child and Adolescent Recommended Food Score

From: The development and evaluation of the Australian child and adolescent recommended food score: a cross-sectional study

Food Group

Items giving 1 point

Items giving more than 1 point

ACARFS

Vegetables

3-4 nightly meals with vegetables‡; ≥1per week of each of the following vegetables: potato, pumpkin, sweet potato, cauliflower, green beans, spinach, cabbage or Brussels sprouts, peas, broccoli, carrots, zucchini or eggplant or squash, capsicum, corn, mushrooms, tomatoes, lettuce, celery or cucumber, avocado, onion or leek or shallots/spring onion.

2 points for ≥5 nightly meals with vegetables‡

21

Fruit

≥1 piece of fruit per day, ≥1 per week of each of the following fruit: canned fruit, fruit salad, dried fruit, apple or pear, orange or mandarin or grapefruit, banana, peach or nectarine or plum or apricot, mango or paw-paw, pineapple, grapes or strawberries or blueberries, melon (any variety).

 

12

Protein Foods – Meat/flesh

≤1 serve of mince meat per month but greater than never; 1 – 4 serve per week of: beef or lamb with or without sauce and/or vegetables per week chicken without batter or crumbing but with or without sauce and/or vegetables, pork with or without sauce and/or vegetables; ≥1 per week of fresh fish, canned tuna or salmon or sardines, other seafood (e.g. prawns, lobster).

 

7

Protein Foods – Meat/flesh alternatives

≥1 per week of the following: nuts (e.g. peanuts, almonds), nut butters, eggs, soybeans or tofu, baked beans, other beans or lentils (e.g. chickpeas, split peas).

 

6

Grains

Usual bread choice is ‘other’ (e.g. rye, high-fiber white); ≥1 per week of the following: muesli, cooked porridge, breakfast cereal (e.g. Weet-bix, Nutri-grain, Cornflakes), bread or pita bread or toast, English muffin or bagel or crumpet, rice, other grains (e.g. couscous, burghul), noodles (e.g. egg noodles, rice noodles), pasta, tacos or burritos or enchiladas, clear soup with rice or noodles.

2 points if usual bread choice is ‘brown’ (multigrain or wholemeal).

13

Dairy

≥2 serves of: milk, yoghurt or cheese per day; ≥1 serve per week but ≤1 serves per day of flavoured milk, ice cream, frozen yoghurt; ≥1 serve per week but ≤4 serves per day of cheese, cheese spread or cream cheese; ≥1 serve per week of plain milk, yoghurt (not frozen), cottage cheese or ricotta.

2 points if usual type of milk is reduced fat milk or skim milk, or soy milk

11

Water

≥4 glasses of water (including tap, unflavoured bottled water, unflavored mineral water).

 

1

Extras

≥1 serve per week of: yeast extract spread; tomato or barbecue sauce

 

2

Total

  

73

  1. ‡Although the serves of vegetables consumed each day is of interest, the question was not available on the ACAES FFQ.