Objective-To assess the adequacy of polyunsaturated fatty acid intake by rural Bangladeshi children 24-48 months of age in relation to their breastfeeding status.Methods-Multi-stage sampling was used to select a representative sample of children 24-48 mo of age from two rural districts in Bangladesh (n=479). Two non-consecutive 24 h periods of dietary data were collected via 12 h daytime in-home observations and recall. Breast milk intake was estimated using test weighing. The National Cancer Institute method for episodically consumed foods was used to estimate distributions of usual food and nutrient intakes.Results-Based on the estimated intake distributions, more than 95% of the children had usual fat intakes less than 30% of total energy. Among 24-35 mo (younger) and 36-48 mo (older) children, respectively, 4% and 16% of breastfeeding children and 31% and 41% of nonbreastfeeding children were estimated to consume less than 10% of total energy from fat. An estimated 80% of all children consumed less than 4% of total energy as linoleic acid, and 99% consumed less than 1% of energy as alpha-linolenic acid. Younger breastfeeding children had higher estimated average docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) intakes (0.04 g DHA/d) than their nonbreastfeeding counterparts (0.01 g DHA/d; p = 0.0005). Both breastfeeding and non-breastfeeding older children had estimated mean DHA intakes of 0.02 g/d (p=0.74). Conclusions-RuralBangladeshi children 24-48 months of age, and especially those who have discontinued breastfeeding, may benefit from increased fat consumption.

No abstract