Diet quality of children post-liver transplantation does not differ from healthy children

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Nutrition
• Transplant Medicine
• Dietary Assessment

Background:

• Limited research exists on the dietary habits of children post-liver transplant (LTX).
• Understanding dietary intake and quality is crucial for managing health outcomes in pediatric transplant recipients.
• Children on immunosuppressive therapies may face unique nutritional challenges.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess and compare the dietary intake and dietary quality (DQ) of healthy children and children post-LTX.
• To identify potential nutritional differences that could impact growth and metabolic health.

Main Methods:

• A comparative study involving children and adolescents (2-18 years) post-LTX (n=27) and healthy controls (n=28).
• Data collection included anthropometric measurements and two 24-hour dietary recalls (weekday and weekend).
• Dietary intake of added sugars, high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), fructose, glycemic index (GI), and glycemic load (GL) were calculated. Dietary quality was assessed using the Healthy Eating Index for Children (HEI-C), Diet Quality Index-Children Adaptation (DGI-CA), and Diet Quality Index-International (DQI-I).

Main Results:

• Children post-LTX exhibited lower height-for-age z-scores compared to healthy children, though weight-for-age z-scores were similar.
• No significant differences were found in energy, macronutrient, added sugar, HFCS, fructose, GI, GL, or most micronutrient intakes between the groups.
• Dietary quality scores (HEI-C, DGI-CA, DQI-I) and the majority of specific nutrient intakes were comparable between children post-LTX and healthy children, with both groups demonstrating poor dietary quality (>40% had low DQ scores).

Conclusions:

• Both healthy children and children post-LTX consume diets of poor quality, indicating a need for nutritional interventions.
• Poor dietary quality in this population may increase the risk of obesity and metabolic dysregulation, particularly for transplant recipients on immunosuppressive therapies.
• Further research and targeted dietary guidance are warranted for pediatric liver transplant recipients to optimize nutritional status and long-term health outcomes.