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.

Background: Food sources of nutrients in young children in China have been little investigated. The objective of this study was to understand feeding patterns of young children through an analysis of food sources of energy and nutrients in the diets of infants and toddlers living in urban areas in China. Methods: This study was part of the cross-sectional study, Maternal Infant Nutrition Growth (MING). One 24-h dietary recall was completed for a total of 1409 children (infants 6-11 months, younger toddlers 12-23 months, and older toddlers 24-36 months) via face-to-face interviews with the primary caregivers. All food, beverage and dietary supplements that the child consumed on the previous day were recorded and processed with a database including data from Chinese Food Composition tables. All reported foods and supplements were assigned to one of 83 food groups developed for the study. Percent contribution of each food group to nutrient intakes was calculated.Results: Children in all 3 age groups received a majority of energy (52 to 69 %) from few foods including infant formula or growing-up (fortified) milk, rice, noodles, pork and eggs, with rice becoming the number one source of energy by 24 months. Rice and noodles were not only top sources of energy (17 to 26 %) and carbohydrate (27 to 40 %) but also top sources of protein (13 to 16 %), iron (13 to 18 %) and zinc (11 to 18 %). Supplements made substantial contributions to intakes of vitamin A, zinc, iron and calcium. Salt added during home-cooking was the main source of sodium (60 to 80 %). Conclusions: Few foods made up the core of the diets of infants and young toddlers living in urban areas in China. Low nutrient-dense rice and noodles were top sources of many nutrients, which could potentially lead to inadequate intakes of some key nutrients.

BackgroundFood consumption patterns of young children in China are not well known.ObjectiveCharacterised food groups consumed by infants and young children in urban China using data from the Maternal Infant Nutrition Growth (MING) study.DesignOne 24-h dietary recall was completed for 1,350 infants and young children (436 infants aged 6–11 months and 914 young children aged 12–35 months), who were recruited from maternal and child care centres in eight cities via face-to-face interviews with the primary caregiver. All foods, beverages and supplements reported were assigned to one of 64 food groups categorised into the following: milk and milk products, grains, vegetables, fruits, protein foods and desserts/sweets. The percentage of infants and young children consuming foods from specific food groups was calculated, regardless of the amount consumed.ResultsLess than half of infants consumed breast milk (47%), whereas 59% of infants consumed infant formula and 53–75% of young children consumed growing-up (fortified) milk. Rice was the number one grain food consumed after 6 months (up to 88%) and the consumption of infant cereal was low. About 50% of infants did not consume any fruits or vegetables, and 38% of young children did not consume any fruits on the day of the recall. Only 40% of all children consumed dark green leafy vegetables and even fewer consumed deep yellow vegetables. Eggs and pork were the most commonly consumed protein foods.ConclusionsThe data provide important insight for developing detailed food consumption guidelines for this population group. Mothers of infants should be encouraged to continue breastfeeding after the first 6 months. Parents should be advised to offer a wide variety of vegetables and fruits daily, particularly dark green leafy and deep yellow vegetables and colourful fruits. The consumption of fortified infant cereal should be advocated to improve the iron intake of Chinese infants.

Food sources of nutrients in Mexican children are not well known. To fill the knowledge gap, dietary intake was assessed in 2057 children using a 24-h dietary recall. All reported foods and beverages were assigned to one of 76 food groups. Percent contribution of each food group to nutrient intake was estimated for four age groups: 0–5.9, 6–11.9, 12–23.9, and 24–47.9 months. Breast milk, infant formula, and cow’s milk were the top sources of energy and nutrients, especially in younger groups. Among infants aged 6–11.9 months, the top food sources of energy included soups and stews, cookies, fruit, tortillas, eggs and egg dishes, and traditional beverages. The same foods plus sweetened breads, dried beans, and sandwiches and tortas were consumed as the top sources of energy among toddlers and young children. Milk, soups, and stews were the top contributors for all nutrients and tortillas, eggs, and egg dishes were among the top contributors for iron and zinc. This study showed that low nutrient-dense cookies, sweetened breads, and traditional beverages were among the core foods consumed early in life in Mexico. This compromises the intake of more nutritious foods such as vegetables and fortified cereals and increases the risk of obesity.

Background Adequate nutrition during childhood and adolescence is essential to promote growth and development. Objective This study evaluated usual energy and nutrient intakes of Filipino schoolchildren and adolescents. Design Food and beverage intakes were collected from a nationally representative sample of schoolchildren aged 6–9 and 10–12 years ( n = 3,594 and n = 2,971, respectively) and adolescents aged 13–18 years ( n = 5,447) using 24-h dietary recalls. The distributions of usual energy and nutrient intakes and the prevalence of inadequate intakes, which is defined as the percent of children with intakes less than estimated average requirements or acceptable macronutrient distribution ranges, were estimated using the Personal Computer Software for Intake Distribution Estimation (PC-SIDE) program. Results The results showed that the mean energy intakes were 19–35% lower than estimated energy requirement. High prevalence of inadequate intakes was found for most macro- and micronutrients. Prevalence of inadequacies was as follows: protein 12–47%, total fat (as percentage of energy) 38–52%, calcium 92–94%, iron 75–90%, vitamin C 68–96%, folate 61–93%, vitamin A 58–81%, riboflavin 58–91%, thiamin 27–75%, and phosphorus 18–91%. Conclusions Generally, prevalence of inadequacy of key nutrients were relatively high among adolescents and schoolchildren, especially those from poor families and rural areas. This study demonstrated that nutrient intakes of Filipino schoolchildren and adolescents were highly inadequate, particularly among the poor and those living in rural areas.