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Updated: Sep 8, 2025

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Associations of dietary patterns and obesity development in school-aged children: results from the CHILD Cohort Study

Zheng Hao Chen1, Gabrielle Jacobson2,3, Myrtha E Reyna3,4

  • 1Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Obesity (Silver Spring, Md.)
|June 18, 2025
PubMed

Insights

Canadian preschoolers

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Nutrition and Public Health
  • Childhood Obesity Research
  • Dietary Pattern Analysis

Background:

  • Childhood obesity is a significant public health concern.
  • Early life dietary habits are crucial for long-term health outcomes.
  • Understanding sex-specific influences on childhood obesity is essential for effective interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To identify data-driven dietary patterns in Canadian preschoolers.
  • To investigate the association between these dietary patterns and obesity development in children.
  • To explore potential sex differences in the impact of diet on obesity.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized data from the prospective CHILD Cohort Study (N=2219).
  • Assessed dietary intake at age 3 years using a 112-item food frequency questionnaire.
  • Measured anthropometric data at age 5 years to define obesity and used principal components analysis and multivariable regression to analyze dietary patterns' associations with obesity outcomes.

Main Results:

  • Identified three distinct dietary patterns: "Prudent," "Western-like," and "Refined Grain-Snack."
  • At age 5 years, 4.7% of children were classified as living with obesity.
  • Female preschoolers adhering to the "Refined Grain-Snack" pattern showed significantly higher waist circumference z scores and increased odds of obesity, with no significant associations found in males.

Conclusions:

  • Preschool dietary patterns are linked to sex-biased obesity development.
  • The "Refined Grain-Snack" pattern is specifically associated with increased obesity risk in females.
  • Further research is needed to develop targeted obesity prevention strategies for different sexes during early childhood.
Abstract

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