Feeding of Dietary Botanical Supplements and Teas to Infants in the United States

Abstract

WHAT'S KNOWN ON THIS SUBJECT:Dietary botanical supplement and tea use among infants as a separate group from children has not been studied. WHAT THIS STUDY ADDS:Our study is the first to examine prevalence of dietary botanical supplement and tea use among US infants. We found that ϳ9% of infants were given these supplements in their first year of life, although usually only for short periods. abstract OBJECTIVES:To describe the use of dietary botanical supplements and teas among infants, the characteristics of mothers who give them the specific botanical supplements and teas used, reasons for use, and sources of information. METHODS:We used data from the Infant Feeding Practices Study II, a longitudinal survey of women studied from late pregnancy through their infant's first year of life conducted by the US Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention between 2005 and 2007. The sample was drawn from a nationally distributed consumer opinion panel and was limited to healthy mothers with healthy term or near-term singleton infants. The final analytical sample included 2653 mothers. Statistical techniques include frequencies, 2 tests, and ordered logit models. RESULTS:Nine percent of infants were given dietary botanical supplements or teas in their first year of life, including infants as young as 1 month. Maternal herbal use (P Ͻ .0001), longer breastfeeding (P Ͻ .0001), and being Hispanic (P ϭ .016) were significantly associated with giving infants dietary botanical supplements or teas in the multivariate model. Many supplements and teas used were marketed and sold specifically for infants. Commonly mentioned information sources included friends or family, health professionals, and the media. CONCLUSIONS:A substantial proportion of infants in this sample was given a wide variety of supplements and teas. Because some supplements given to infants may pose health risks, health care providers need to recognize that infants under their care may be receiving supplements or teas.

Are We All Talking about the Same Thing? Heterogeneity and Nomenclature in Description of Natural Health Products

“…One quarter of those paired medication-NHP or NHP-NHP could have potentially caused adverse interactions, with bleeding being the most common. 9 The importance of this can be illustrated with patients taking high doses of fish oil supplements. Omega fatty acids can produce an antithrombotic effect, increasing the risk of bleeding.…”

Effect of a URI-Related Educational Intervention in Early Head Start on ED Visits

“…[1][2][3][4] Lack of knowledge about causes and medically appropriate treatment of URIs among parents and caregivers [5][6][7][8] has been linked to increased health service use, including pediatric emergency department (PED) visits [8][9][10] and adverse care practices such as inappropriate use of over-thecounter (OTC) cough and cold medications and/or home remedies in young children, [11][12][13][14][15] medication dosing errors, 16 and antibiotic seeking. 8,9,17 Limited health literacy affects over 90 million Americans 18 and is especially prevalent in low-income households and among minorities and people with limited English proficiency.…”

“…7,[20][21][22] They are also at higher risk for believing antibiotics are needed for URI and for using OTC medications and home remedies for young children. 13,15,20,21,23 Previous studies have found mixed impacts of educational efforts directed at care for URIs. [24][25][26][27][28][29] These studies were primarily conducted in practice settings with predominately non-minority populations.…”

“…48 Finally, in addition to improving knowledge regarding URI overall, the intervention also had an impact on attitudes toward home remedy use. Home remedy use even for young children is not uncommon, 13,49 and although many home remedies are safe to use, some are not. 12,37,50-52 Additionally, many patients do not disclose home remedy use to their health care providers.…”

Herbal medicinal products in the paediatric population—status quo and perspectives

“…In a long-term survey carried out in women from late pregnancy through their infant's first year of life, 9 % of infants were treated with dietary botanical supplements or teas in their first year of life including infants as young as 1 month. The study was conducted by the US Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [9].…”