Drinks consumed by 18-month-old children: are current recommendations being followed?

Abstract

OBJECTIVE:To examine the types of drinks consumed by children at 18 months of age, determine any associations with sociodemographic characteristics and investigate the use of a bottle for providing these drinks. DESIGN: A total of 1026 randomly chosen children from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Pregnancy and Childhood (ALSPAC) were studied. METHODS: As part of a dietary diary completed when their children were 18 months of age, mothers were asked to record all drinks consumed over a 24 h period and to report the containers used to give these drinks. Socio-demographic characteristics were obtained via self-completion questionnaire. RESULTS: Dietary records were available for 1026 children at 18 months. A wide variety of drinks were given at this age. In all, 64% of children had received at least one drink in a bottle and 10% solely used a bottle. Bottle users consumed a significantly greater volume of milk drinks compared to those who used a cup or other container. The types of drinks consumed and adherence to the guidelines on weaning were associated with several socio-demographic characteristics. In particular, children with mothers of lower educational level were more likely to receive fizzy drinks and low-calorie soft drinks, more likely to drink from a bottle, and less likely to drink from a cup. CONCLUSION: We have shown that certain groups of mothers with 18-month-old children are not following the current guidelines on weaning. Assuming these guidelines have scientific validity, it is clear that nutritional education needs to be targeted at these mothers to help them feed their children in the optimal way, to protect from nutritional deficiencies, possible later obesity and poor dental health.

Consumption of ‘extra’ foods (energy-dense, nutrient-poor) among children aged 16–24 months from western Sydney, Australia

“…Our sample was from a group who had a family history of atopy and whose parents were better educated than the population of the area in which they resided. An association between high 'snack' food intake and lower socio-economic status has been previously documented in the UK 22,24,29,35 and may also be the case in Australia. Moreover, mothers with children at high risk of atopy may exclude particular foods from their children's diets.…”

Práticas alimentares no primeiro ano de vida e fatores associados em amostra representativa da cidade de Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul

“…Em Pelotas (RS), foram observados alto consumo energético e introdução precoce de leite de vaca especialmente para crianças de menor nível socioeconômico 33 . Estudo internacional também demonstrou que os anos de estudo da mãe foram inversamente associados ao consumo de bebidas açucaradas, sobremesas e doces pelas crianças pequenas 34 . O maior nível educacional e o trabalho fora de casa também podem estar relacionados à renda familiar mais elevada, o que possibilita maior acesso aos alimentos de custo mais alto, como vegetais e carnes.…”

Development and evaluation of an intervention for the prevention of childhood obesity in a multiethnic population: the Born in Bradford applied research programme

“…There is a good theoretical 51 and empirical 33,36,[52][53][54][55][56] basis for developing obesity prevention interventions in early childhood as unfavourable health behaviours are established in early childhood and are good predictors of subsequent behaviours. It is likely, therefore, that early childhood provides a unique and circumscribed opportunity to promote health and prevent obesity.…”