Predictive associations between lifestyle behaviours and dairy consumption: The IDEFICS study

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Nutrition
• Cardiovascular Health
• Lifestyle Behaviors

Background:

• Physical activity (PA) and sedentary behaviors (SB) impact obesity and cardiometabolic risk.
• The role of dairy consumption in cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors is debated.
• Longitudinal data on lifestyle behaviors and dairy intake in children is needed.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the longitudinal relationship between PA, SB, and dairy consumption in European children and adolescents.
• To investigate how combinations of lifestyle behaviors influence dairy intake over time.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of data from 1688 children in the IDEFICS study with two measurement points (2-year interval).
• Dietary intake assessed via 24-h recall, PA by accelerometers, and sedentary screen time (SST) reported by parents.
• Multilevel regression models and analysis of covariance used to assess associations, adjusting for confounders.

Main Results:

• Gender differences observed in dairy consumption and adherence to PA/SB recommendations.
• Children meeting both PA and SB recommendations at both time points consumed more milk and yogurt, and less cheese.
• Healthy lifestyle patterns were associated with specific dairy consumption profiles.

Conclusions:

• European children with consistently healthy lifestyles (PA and SB) showed higher consumption of milk and yogurt.
• The observed protective effects of certain dairy products may be partly explained by their association with healthy lifestyle behaviors.
• Promoting healthy PA and SB may encourage healthier dairy consumption patterns in children.