Objective-To survey the drinking habits of young children with reference to the consumption of plain water, and to estimate the proportion of a child's recommended energy intake contributed by drinks. Design-A prospective survey. Setting-Health centres, mother and toddler groups, and infant schools in and around Southampton. Subjects-39 preschool and 66 infant schoolchildren.Interventions-Parents kept a diary of all drinks consumed by the child over 48 hours. Parents were interviewed with a questionnaire about the drinking habits of their child. Main outcome measures-The type of drinks and volume of fluid consumed over 48 hours; the proportion of a child's recommended energy intake consumed through drinks. Results-72-5% of the preschool group and 50% of the infant school group never drank plain water. Squash was by far the most frequently consumed drink. 15% of the preschool group consumed just under 50%/ of their recommended daily energy intake in drinks. Conclusions-Young children consume large quantities of squash which constitutes a substantial energy supply. It is possible that they are conditioned at an early age to the sweet taste of drinks that may be of no nutritional benefit to them.

No abstract

Objective-To evaluate the eVect of currently recommended energy rich cystic fibrosis diets on fibre intake and to investigate the relationship between fibre intake and the occurrence of gut symptoms. Method-Prospective completion of nonweighed five day food diaries by 28 children with cystic fibrosis and comparison of mean daily fibre intake with age matched controls who did not have cystic fibrosis. Prospective completion of similar diaries to a total of 68 children with cystic fibrosis and comparison of fibre and lipase intake with the occurrence of gut symptoms. Results-Mean daily fibre intake in children with cystic fibrosis was 7.00 g compared with 14.65 g in controls (p<0.001). Mean daily fibre intake in eight patients troubled with moderate or severe abdominal pain was 0.144 g/kg. This was significantly lower (p<0.01) than mean values for 22 patients with occasional but mild symptoms (0.249 g/kg) and 38 with no gut symptoms (0.312 g/kg). There was a trend towards higher pancreatic enzyme doses (lipase/kg/day) in children with abdominal pain. Conclusions-Currently recommended cystic fibrosis diets have a low fibre content. A low residue diet might be an important factor in the pathogenesis of gastrointestinal symptoms.

No abstract

No abstract