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Early feeding practices and body mass index z-score among Saudi preschoolers: a cross-sectional study
1Clinical Nutrition Department, Faculty of Applied Medical Sciences, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. aimuwseli@kau.edu.sa.
Insights
Many mothers in Saudi Arabia offer fruit juice and date syrup-milk mixtures in baby bottles, which is linked to lower birthweights. Further research is needed to understand long-term impacts on child body mass index (BMI).
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Nutrition
- Public Health
- Child Development
Background:
- Early feeding practices significantly influence long-term eating behaviors, growth, and body mass index (BMI) trajectory.
- Understanding these practices is crucial for promoting healthy child development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To characterize early feeding practices among mothers in Saudi Arabia.
- To examine the associations between these practices, child birthweight, and BMI z-score (BMIz) at preschool age.
Main Methods:
- A cross-sectional study of 209 mother-child dyads in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
- Data collected via telephone questionnaires and objective anthropometric measurements.
- Analysis included descriptive statistics, bivariate analyses, and linear regression.
Main Results:
- Over half of mothers offered fruit juice (52.2%) and date syrup-milk (45.9%) in baby bottles.
- Children offered these in bottles had significantly lower birthweights.
- A negative association between offering fruit juice in bottles and preschool BMIz was observed but not significant after adjustments.
Conclusions:
- A substantial proportion of mothers utilize baby bottles for fruit juice and date syrup-milk mixtures.
- More research, including longitudinal and intervention studies, is required to fully understand the implications for child health outcomes.
- Findings can inform improved feeding guidelines and public health campaigns in the region.
Background:
Feeding practices during early years may have long-lasting influences on eating behaviors, growth patterns and body mass index (BMI) trajectory. The objectives of this study were to characterize early feeding practices among mothers in Saudi Arabia and examine their associations with child birthweight and BMI z-score (BMIz) at preschool.
Methods:
This is a cross-sectional study including 209 mother-child dyads who were recruited from different preschools around the city of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Mothers completed the study questionnaire over the telephone and preschoolers' anthropometric measurements were objectively measured using standardized procedures. Primary predictors included variables pertaining to breastfeeding initiation, breastfeeding duration, formula milk introduction, complementary feeding, and offering fruit juice, date syrup-milk mixture, and soda drinks in a baby bottle. The study's primary outcome was BMIz at preschool. Mothers reported child's birthweight and sociodemographic characteristics. Descriptive statistics were used to characterize early feeding practices. Bivariate analyses and linear regression analysis were used to examine the association of early feeding practices with child birthweight and BMIz at preschool.
Results:
About half of the mothers reported that they have offered fruit juice and/or date syrup-milk mixture in a baby bottle (52.2% and 45.9% respectively), with an average duration of 11.5 months (SD = 7.73) and 5.90 months (SD = 6.13), respectively. Children who were offered fruit juice and/or date syrup-milk mixture in a baby bottle had significantly lower birthweights compared to children who were not (M = 2.79, SD = 0.59 vs. M = 3.06, SD = 0.69, P < 0.01 and M = 2.79, SD = 0.67 vs. M = 3.03, SD = 0.62, P < 0.01, respectively). There was a negative association between introducing fruit juice in a baby bottle and child BMIz at preschool (β: -0.18, 95% confidence interval (CI): -0.83, -0.11); This association was not significant after adjusting for child birthweight and other covariates (β: -0.10, 95% CI: -0.64, 0.09).
Conclusion:
A large proportion of mothers reported offering fruit juice and date syrup-milk mixture in a baby bottle. Additional research is needed to understand associations with child birthweight and BMIz. Longitudinal and interventions studies can help inform counseling guidelines and community campaigns in order to improve early feeding practices in the region.
