Contribution of commercial infant products and fortified staple foods to nutrient intake at ages 6, 12, and 18 months in a cohort of children from a low socio‐economic community in South Africa

Abstract

Fortification of two staple foods, maize meal and wheat flour (bread), is mandatory, and commercial infant products are widely available in South Africa. Using a 24-hr recall, we determined the contribution of these foods towards nutrient intakes at ages 6 (n = 715), 12 (n = 446), and 18 (n = 213) months in a cohort of children in a peri-urban community, North West province. On the day of recall, commercial infant products were consumed by 83% of children at 6 months, 46% at 12 months, and 15% at 18 months; fortified staples were consumed by 23%, 81%, and 96%, respectively. For consumers thereof, commercial infant products contributed 33% energy and 94% iron intakes at 6 months and 27% energy and 56% iron intakes at 12 months; nutrient densities of the complementary diet was higher than for nonconsumers for most micronutrients. For consumers of fortified staples, energy contribution thereof was 11% at 6 months versus 29% at 18 months; at 18 months, fortified staples contributed >30% of iron, zinc, vitamin A, thiamine, niacin, vitamin B6, and folate; at 12 months, nutrient densities of the complementary diet were higher for zinc, folate, and vitamin B6 but lower for calcium, iron, vitamin A, niacin, and vitamin C than nonconsumers. At ages 12 and 18 months, ~75% of children had low calcium intakes. At 12 months, 51.4% of consumers versus 25.0% (P = 0.005) of nonconsumers of fortified staples had adequate intakes (>EAR) for all eight fortificant nutrients. However, despite fortification, nutrient gaps remain.

Bean‐based nutrient‐enriched puffed snacks: Formulation design, functional evaluation, and optimization

“…Nutrients derived from consuming the optimal bean‐based snack were computed from the nutrient density per 100 kcal and direct comparison with the recommended daily intake (RDI) for children aged 4–12 years (Swanepoel et al., 2018). Estimation of the nutrient density and nutrient contribution showed that from 100 g snack serving of the optimal extruded bean snack if consumed would provide at least 60%, 48%, or 19% of the RDI for protein, iron, and zinc, respectively, for 9‐ to 12‐year‐old and more than 100% for 4–8 year children (Table 7).…”

Dietary patterns of 6–24‐month‐old children are associated with nutrient content and quality of the diet

“…In Study 1 , additional data were collected 6 months after the completion of the RCT (at age 18–24 months). In Study 3 (Smuts et al ; Swanepoel et al, ), dietary intake data were collected for children who participated in an RCT that was done in a peri‐urban site in North West province. Study participants were recruited through primary health care facilities and house‐to‐house visits.…”

“…In vulnerable populations in South Africa, dietary intake in 6–24‐month‐old children can range from predominantly maize‐based to predominantly based on commercial infant foods (Faber, ; Faber, Laubscher, & Berti, ; Swanepoel et al, ). Pooling diverse dietary intake data would potentially provide a dataset with sufficient variation to determine the nutrient profile of a variety of dietary patterns.…”

Are Sugar-Reduced and Whole Grain Infant Cereals Sensorially Accepted at Weaning? A Randomized Controlled Cross-Over Trial

“…Infant cereals play an important role in complementary feeding in both developed and low-income countries [ 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 ]. Infant cereals enhance nutritional intake, compensate iron depletion at the beginning of complementary feeding, foster the development of microbiota and are suitable for a transition from milk to solid foods due to the mild taste and semi-solid texture [ 11 ].…”