Nutrient Intakes and Food Sources of Filipino Infants, Toddlers and Young Children are Inadequate: Findings from the National Nutrition Survey 2013

Abstract

Comprehensive assessment of nutrient intakes and food sources of nutrients in Filipino children under 5 years old are lacking. We studied energy and nutrient intakes and food sources in 4218 children aged 6–59.9 months using two 24-h dietary recalls. Usual energy and nutrient intakes were estimated using the PC-SIDE program. Reported foods and beverages were assigned to one of 85 food groups. Percentage contribution of each food group to nutrient intake was calculated. The results showed that the intake of total fat as a percentage of energy and of most micronutrients were highly inadequate. The prevalence of inadequate nutrient intakes, defined as the percent of children with intakes less than the estimated average requirements (EAR) ranged from 60–90% for iron, calcium, vitamin C, and zinc and ranged from 30–50% for others such as vitamin A, thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6, and phosphorus. The diets of these children were composed of limited foods, namely a large amount of refined rice and other low-nutrient-dense foods (cookies and sugar), while vegetables, fruits, meats, and eggs made little contribution to daily energy or nutrients. These findings provide direction to health professionals developing food-based recommendations and strategies to tackle the shortfalls in the diet of this population.

Complementary feeding patterns of Filipino infants and toddlers lack diversity, especially among children from poor households

“…This is similar to results reported in other countries including India, China and Japan [22][23][24]. Forti ed young child beverages provide a source of iron among Filipino infants (6-11.9mo) and toddlers (12-23.9mo), respectively [5]. However, consumption of these products was more prevalent in infants and toddlers from higher income households.…”

“…This was re ected by poorer intakes of vitamins and minerals in toddlers from poorer backgrounds. However, a recent paper by Denney et al in the same population, identi ed inadequate of protein and B vitamins in Filipino infants and toddlers at population level [5]. Ideally, the mandatory rice with vitamins and minerals in the Philippines could provide a public health opportunity to improve nutrient intakes, particularly among children from poorer households.…”

“…In the current study, infants were more likely to consume fruit juice and powdered chocolate milk than other types of SSBs. In order to help combat the nutritional inadequacies in the Philippines, fruit juice and chocolate milk are often forti ed and have been shown to be among the top sources of micronutrients in the diets of Filipino children [5]. Forti ed fruit juice has been effective at reducing the basal level of iron de cient anaemia in Filipino school children from 100% to 13% [29,30].…”

“…The Individual Dietary Evaluation System (IDES), developed by FNRI, was used to process the dietary records and to estimate nutrient intakes from the 24Hr recalls [5]. Quality control of the data collected occurred at both the food level (amounts reported and coding to appropriate food groups) and at nutrient level to exclude implausible intakes [15].…”

Dairy Intake Would Reduce Nutrient Gaps in Chinese Young Children Aged 3–8 Years: A Modelling Study

“…Children require sufficient nutrients to meet the need for rapid growth and development [2]. Many studies around the world focus on evaluating nutrient intakes and their adherence to recommended reference values among young children [3][4][5][6]. Bailey et al [3] reported that 79% and 30% of 3-4-year-old US children consumed less than the estimated average requirement (EAR) for vitamins D and E, respectively, although their intakes of most other nutrients were largely adequate.…”