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Association of Snacking Frequency with Patterning of Daily Energy Intake and Weight Among US Toddlers and Preschoolers
Author(s) -
Fisher Jennifer Orlet,
Davey Adam,
Kachurak Alexandria,
Bailey Regan K
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.31.1_supplement.29.4
Subject(s) - snacking , overweight , percentile , medicine , national health and nutrition examination survey , obesity , childhood obesity , demography , odds , demographics , cross sectional study , pediatrics , environmental health , mathematics , logistic regression , statistics , endocrinology , population , pathology , sociology
Snacking is nearly universal among young children but associations with weight status are not well studied especially among young children for whom snacks are believed to be important for growth. The objective of this research was to evaluate the cross‐sectional association of snacking frequency with weight status and daily energy intake among 4,271 US toddlers and preschoolers aged 12–71 months participating in the 2007–2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Snacking and nutrient intakes were estimated using the mean of 2, 24‐hr dietary recalls. Overweight among toddlers was defined as weight‐for‐length ≥ 97.7 th percentile and overweight/obesity among preschoolers was defined as BMI z‐score ≥ 85 th percentile. Models used American Academy of Pediatrics recommendations of 2–3 snacks/d as the reference group; data were adjusted for survey design and sample weights, demographics and energy reporting accuracy. In the total sample, 8.7% of children 12–23 mo and 23.8% of children were overweight or obese. Children consumed, on average, 28% (419.3 ± 6.1 kcal) of daily energy from snacks eaten at 2.91 ± 0.03 occasions/d. Children consuming 4+snacks/d (n=610, 13.5%) had greater odds of being OW/OB (OR=1.50, 95CI=2.09–0.02, p<0.05), consumed slightly greater daily energy (Mean (SE)= 1495 (14.0) vs.1462 (4.9), p<0.05), and consumed a greater proportion of daily energy from snacks (42% (0.7) vs. 27% (0.5), p<0.0001) than children consuming 2–3 snacks/d (n=2189, 55.1%). Risk of OW/OB and energy intake among children consuming 0–1 snacks/d did not differ from children consuming 2–3 snacks/d in the full sample. Among preschoolers, however, those children consuming 0–1 snacks/d had a lower risk of OW/OB than children consuming 2–3 snacks/d (OR=0.75, 95CI=0.57–0.98, p<0.05). These findings provide first evidence of associations between snacking frequency and weight status among young US children < 5 years. These findings indicate that US toddlers and preschoolers who snack more frequently than recommended guidelines may consume greater daily energy and be at elevated risk of OW/OB than those who do not. That preschoolers who consumed fewer than 2–3 snacks/d had the lowest risk of OW/OB points to potential age‐related changes in the role of snacking in healthy weight. Longitudinal and experimental studies are needed to evaluate causal influences of snacking on appetite and growth in early childhood. Support or Funding Information NIH R21 HD085137‐01A1