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Updated: Aug 9, 2026
Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
Published on: February 2, 2017
[Investigation of nutrition and feeding status among children under 2 years in Beijing]
Yao Zhao1, Lei Huang, Zheng Zhang
1Institute of Nutrition and Food Hygiene, Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing 100013, China.
Insights
This study assessed nutrition, breastfeeding, and complementary feeding in Beijing children under 2. Findings highlight the need for improved infant feeding practices through education and intervention.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Nutrition
- Public Health
- Child Development
Context:
- Child nutrition is crucial for long-term health.
- Understanding feeding practices in urban populations is essential.
- Beijing's diverse demographics present unique nutritional challenges.
Purpose:
- To investigate nutrition status, breastfeeding, and complementary feeding in children under 2 years in Beijing.
- To identify current trends and potential areas for improvement in infant and young child feeding.
Summary:
- A survey of 422 children in Beijing revealed average birth weight of 3325g.
- Exclusive breastfeeding was practiced by 56.6% of infants under 4 months.
- Complementary feeding was initiated by 99.4% of infants by 6 months, with urban-rural differences noted.
Impact:
- Results underscore the importance of promoting breastfeeding.
- Findings suggest targeted education and intervention are needed to optimize complementary feeding practices.
- This research can inform public health strategies for improving child nutrition in Beijing.
Objective:
To investigate the nutrition status, breast feeding and complementary feeding among children under 2 years of age in Beijing.
Methods:
A stratified cluster randomly sampling method was used. After having got the compliance a questionnaire survey was carried out to 422 children < 2 year-old in total 18 districts of Beijing.
Results:
The average infant birth weight was 3325 g, the rate of weight (2500 g and > or = 4000 g were 2.8% and 13.0% respectively. The rate of exclusive breast-feeding, partial breast-feeding, bottle-feeding of infant under 4 months was 56.6%, 33.9% and 9.5% respectively. The average weaning time was 7.4 months. The rate of complementary feeding of infant up to 6 months was 99.4%. The average ages for addition of complementary feeding such as cereal, vegetable and fruit, egg, oil, nutrients in rural areas were later than those in urban.
Conclusion:
It is important to promote breast feeding and improve complementary feeding by education and intervention.