Early Origins of Overeating: Tracking Between Early Food Habits and Later Eating Patterns

Abstract

This review considers papers published in the last decade in relation to tracking between early food habits (here, habits acquired before 10 years) and later eating patterns. This review analyzes first how later eating patterns may be associated with the mode of milk feeding (formula vs. breast feeding; type of formula) and with the way complementary feeding is conducted (timing and type/variety of foods offered). Beyond the first year, this review focuses on the tracking of food preferences, food variety, portion size, dietary intake and eating traits. Most studies revealed moderate but significant associations between mode of milk feeding and complementary feeding practices and later eating patterns. When the baseline period is beyond 1 year, a moderate level of tracking is also observed for most eating behaviors reported (food preferences; food variety; dietary intake; eating traits), revealing a consistency over time in eating behavior; however eating behavior is likely to evolve when children grow older.

An Early Feeding Practices Intervention for Obesity Prevention

“…4 The way that infants are fed ("feeding practices") programs taste preferences and appetite regulation and lays the foundation for lifelong eating patterns. [5][6][7] The many protective effects of breastfeeding, including healthy growth patterns, are clear. [8][9][10] The impact of the process of complementary feeding that enables transition from milk feeding to adult eating patterns has received less attention.…”

Processed and ultra-processed food consumption among children aged 13 to 35 months and associated factors

“…Attaining proper nutrition in the early years of life is critical to infant growth and development 10,11 and the dietary habits acquired early tend to persist not only into childhood but also into adulthood 12,13 . There is strong evidence indicating that socioeconomic and demographic characteristics (such as maternal age and education, household income, children having older siblings) 14,15 and family life habits (such as parent nutrition knowledge and food parenting practices) play an important role in children's food preferences 16,17,18 .…”

Reducing childhood obesity: opportunities to influence transitional infant feeding

“…141 Longitudinal evidence suggests that food preferences are formed as early as 2 years and can track over time. 8,142 Furthermore,…”

“…6 The transitional diet of the infant from milk feeds to family foods offers an opportunity to establish lifelong healthy eating behaviours, with early food habits shown to form the basis for eating patterns in later life. 7,8 The Australian Infant Feeding Guidelines 9 (hereafter, Guidelines), consistent with international recommendations, provide direction about when to introduce solids and which foods to introduce. However, it is argued that they fail to provide adequate authoritative advice regarding how foods should be given, including guidance around feeding practices parents use to alter the amount of food their children eat.…”

“…7,8,40 Innate food preferences, satiety regulation and obesity risk of infants are malleable and how they are expressed is dependent on the environment in which they are exposed. 204 Parents, in particular mothers, play an important role in what and how food is provided during the early years and focusing within this family environment may provide some answers to the current obesity crisis sweeping the world.…”