Nowadays, the advantages of breastmilk are recognized and exclusive breastfeeding is recommended up to 6 months, to be supplemented with other foods from this age on and continued until at least 2 years of age. Infant nutrition, whether natural or artificial, has always been determined and conditioned by the social value attributed to breastfeeding.

Objectives: To review the history of pacifiers and to compile a multidisciplinary literature review, searching for pros and cons with the purpose of providing health professionals with arguments when parents request guidance. Sources:History and art books, as well as non-medical literature and museums were used in the historical survey. Multidisciplinary data were collected from MEDLINE, LILACS, SciELO, and The Cochrane Library. Search criteria were: the keyword "pacifiers" present in articles published in the last 5 years that included abstract and were written in Portuguese, English, or Spanish. Summary of the findings:There is evidence that their precursors have been used since the Neolithic Period to calm down children. Small balls made of fabric containing food were portrayed in paintings. Other balls made of non-perishable material persisted throughout time. Pacifiers have been used to stimulate sucking or to coordinate this reflex, promoting an earlier beginning of the oral feeding of newborns. Some authors suggest that pacifiers reduce the incidence of the sudden death syndrome, but the topic is controversial. Pacifiers prevent the establishment of breastfeeding and lead to weaning. Their use may cause suffocation, poisoning, or allergies and increases the risk of caries, infections, and intestinal parasitic diseases. Harmful effects are related to frequency, duration, and intensity of the habit. It should be discontinued by the age of 3 or 4 in order not to affect speech and dentition. Conclusions:There are more harmful effects than benefits. It is advisable that health professionals inform parents of the pros and cons of pacifiers so that they can make a conscious decision regarding its use.J Pediatr (Rio J). 2009;85(6):480-489: Pacifier, sucking behavior. ResumoObjetivos: Resgatar a história da chupeta e fazer um levantamento multidisciplinar da literatura, buscando prós e contras, com o propósito de oferecer aos profissionais da saúde subsídios para orientarem os pais. Fontes dos dados:O levantamento histórico foi realizado em livros de história, arte, literatura secular, museus, e a busca de dados, em livros e nas bases MEDLINE, LILACS, SciELO e Biblioteca Cochrane. Os limites para busca foram: pacifiers, últimos 5 anos, com resumo, texto em português, inglês ou espanhol. Síntese dos dados:Existem evidências de que os precursores da chupeta foram empregados desde o período neolítico para acalmar as crianças. Bolinhas de pano que continham alimentos ficaram imortalizadas em telas. Outras, feitas de materiais não perecíveis, resistiram ao tempo. A chupeta tem sido utilizada para estimular a sucção ou para coordenar esse reflexo, antecipando o início da alimentação oral de recém-nascidos. Alguns sugerem que diminui a incidência de morte súbita, mas o assunto é controverso. Ela impede o estabelecimento da mamada e induz ao desmame. Pode provocar asfixia, intoxicações ou alergias e aumenta o risco de cáries, infecções e parasitoses intestinais. Efeitos deletérios se associam à frequência, duração...

Although the students from private schools belonged to a higher socioeconomic status, there is currently no longer a large gap between them and girls from public schools regarding nutritional and socioeconomic factors that may influence the age at menarche.

Rev. Nutr., Campinas, 22 (4) R E S U M O ObjetivoComparar os componentes da composição corporal, obtidos pela bioimpedância elétrica perna-perna e pela espessura das dobras cutâneas, em crianças. MétodosA composição corporal de 1.286 escolares (703 meninas e 538 meninos) entre 7 e 9 anos foi avaliada pelas dobras triciptal e subescapular e pela bioimpedância elétrica perna-perna (TANITA TBF-300ª). Para analisar a concordância entre o percentual de gordura corporal, a massa gorda e a massa magra obtidos pelos métodos, foram utilizados o coeficiente de correlação de Pearson (r) e o modelo de Bland-Altman. ResultadosA correlação (r) foi alta e significante, respectivamente nas meninas e nos meninos, para o percentual de gordura corporal (0,77 e 0,89), para a massa gorda (0,93 e 0,94) e para a massa magra (0,92 e 0,89). O modelo de Bland-Altman também mostrou haver boa concordância entre os métodos, uma vez que poucos pontos, correspondentes às diferenças entre as medidas feitas pelos métodos, estavam fora do intervalo de confiança. ConclusãoEstes resultados demonstram que a técnica de bioimpedância elétrica perna-perna é comparável à técnica das dobras cutâneas para avaliar a composição corporal de escolares em estudos populacionais. Individualmente, a ampla variabilidade observada em algumas medidas sugere que a utilização da bioimpedância elétrica perna-perna ou das dobras cutâneas deve ser associada a outros indicadores na avaliação da composição corporal. Termos de indexação:Composição corporal. Crianças. Impedância elétrica.

Objectives: To review the history of pacifiers and to compile a multidisciplinary literature review, searching for pros and cons with the purpose of providing health professionals with arguments when parents request guidance.Sources: History and art books, as well as non-medical literature and museums were used in the historical survey. Multidisciplinary data were collected from MEDLINE, LILACS, SciELO, and The Cochrane Library. Search criteria were: the keyword "pacifiers" present in articles published in the last 5 years that included abstract and were written in Portuguese, English, or Spanish. Summary of the findings:There is evidence that their precursors have been used since the Neolithic Period to calm down children. Small balls made of fabric containing food were portrayed in paintings. Other balls made of non-perishable material persisted throughout time. Pacifiers have been used to stimulate sucking or to coordinate this reflex, promoting an earlier beginning of the oral feeding of newborns. Some authors suggest that pacifiers reduce the incidence of the sudden death syndrome, but the topic is controversial. Pacifiers prevent the establishment of breastfeeding and lead to weaning. Their use may cause suffocation, poisoning, or allergies and increase the risk of caries, infections, and intestinal parasitic diseases. Harmful effects are related to frequency, duration, and intensity of the habit. It should be discontinued by the age of 3 or 4, in order not to affect speech and dentition. Conclusions:There are more harmful effects than benefits. It is advisable that health professionals inform parents of the pros and cons of pacifiers so that they can make a conscious decision regarding its use.J Pediatr (Rio J). 2009;85(6):480-489: Pacifier, sucking behavior.

RESUMOObjetivo: Avaliar a tendência secular da menarca de acordo com o índice de massa corporal (IMC). Sujeitos e métodos: Seiscentos e oitenta e cinco meninas (7-18 anos) ABSTRACTObjective: To evaluate the secular trend of menarche according to body mass index (BMI). Subjects and methods: Six hundred and eighty five girls (7-18 years) assessed in 2001 were compared with 750 evaluated in 2010. They were grouped by BMI Z-score: (thin + normal) and (overweight + obese). Menarche was reported by status quo and age at menarche estimated by a logit model. We used the Qui-square test, Mann-Whitney test, and Logistic Regression, at a 5% significance level. Results: Menarche advanced 3.24 months. There was an increase in obesity, and a decrease of the prevalence of normal girls. Menarche was anticipated by 1.44 month in the thin + normal group and by 5.76 months in the overweight + obese group. There was no interaction between the effects determined by the evaluated period and nutritional diagnosis. Conclusions: Although both the period and BMI influence the menarche, one cannot attribute this advance only to changes in the nutritional profile of the sample. Other factors that were not tested may also contribute to this finding. INTRODUÇÃO A menarca corresponde a um evento tardio da puberdade e é importante indicador da maturação sexual. A tendência à antecipação da idade em que ela ocorre, observada por décadas nos países desenvolvidos, sempre foi relacionada à melhora das condições de vida e saúde da população, particularmente do acesso aos alimentos (1-3).

Embora a menarca seja um fenômeno tardio dentro do processo puberal, muitos pais percebem, só neste momento, que suas filhas não são mais crianças. Os pediatras são procurados nessa ocasião para esclarecer certas dúvidas e tranqüilizá-los. Com certa freqüência, indagam sobre o potencial de crescimento da menina e pedem que seja estimada sua estatura final. A literatura a respeito do crescimento pós-menarca é escassa, talvez devido às próprias características da adolescência que, por envolver inúmeras variáveis, dificulta a interpretação dos resultados. Esta revisão bibliográfica tem como objetivo focalizar alguns aspectos relacionados ao crescimento, que auxiliem o médico a oferecer um prognóstico um pouco mais preciso do que médias populacionais, para a adolescente que o questiona a respeito, considerando-se que ela já tenha menstruado. Não existe correlação entre a idade em que o pico de velocidade de crescimento ocorre e a estatura final. Na menarca, a adolescente já alcançou 95,5% da estatura final. Por mais 3 ou 4,8 anos, incrementos progressivamente menores irão ocorrer. As meninas que maturam mais cedo (menstruando antes da idade mediana de 12,6 anos para a ocorrência da menarca) provavelmente crescerão mais do que a média de 6 ou 7cm, e por mais tempo, do que as que maturam mais tarde, até atingirem sua estatura final.
Although menarche is a late event in the puberal process, most parents do not realize until this moment that their daughters are no longer children. At that time, they usually turn to the pediatrician for enlightenment and serenity. They frequently ask about the girl's growth potential and for an estimate of her final height. There are only a few studies in the scientific literature on postmenarcheal growth, perhaps due to the special characteristics of adolescence, which makes interpretation of the results difficult. The purpose of this review is to provide pediatricians with a means of making more accurate prognosis than populational means on growth after menarche for the adolescent girl, taking into account she has already had menarche. There is no correlation between age at the peak of height velocity and final height. At menarche the adolescent has already reached 95.5% of her final height. Progressively smaller increments in stature continue for 3 to 4.8 years. The early matures (menarche earlier than the mean age of 12.6 years) probably will grow more than the mean of 6 or 7cm, and for a longer period than the ones who are later matures until they reach their final height

The purpose of this paper was to assess post-menarcheal growth in a cohort of Brazilian girls and correlate it with the age, stature and BMI at menarche. Records of the age, weight, and stature at menarche, and 5 years later, of 111 girls who attended the Adolescent Unit of the Child Institute-HC-Medical School of the University of São Paulo, were recovered. The median age at menarche was 12.67 years and the mean increase in height was 7.54 +/- 3.35 cm. The largest span of growth was observed in girls who reached menarche before 12.67 years (r= -0.46; p= 0.0001) and in the ones who had less stature at this moment (r= -0.44; p= 0.0001). The best correlation was observed in girls with stature between p25 and p75 of NCHS reference data (r= -0.72; p= 0.0001). Adolescents with greater BMI had earlier menarche (11.9 years). No correlation was found between BMI and post-menarcheal growth (r= 0). In this cohort, post-menarcheal growth was similar to other studies and correlations offer information to assess the potential of growth after menarche.