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Fluoride intake from food items in 2‐ to 6‐year‐old B razilian children living in a non‐fluoridated area using a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire
Author(s) -
Levy Flavia Mauad,
Olympio Kelly Polido Kaneshiro,
Philippi Sonia Tucunduva,
Buzalaf Marília Afonso Rabelo
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
international journal of paediatric dentistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.183
H-Index - 62
eISSN - 1365-263X
pISSN - 0960-7439
DOI - 10.1111/ipd.12015
Subject(s) - medicine , food frequency questionnaire , fluoride , food group , epidemiology , environmental health , food intake , dentistry , demography , inorganic chemistry , chemistry , sociology
Background Estimating fluoride intake ( FI ) using the ‘duplicate plate’ method is difficult and can raise ethical dilemmas. Aim To apply a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire ( FFQ ) to 2‐ to 6‐year‐old B razilian children in a non‐fluoridated area (i) to estimate their FI and (ii) to provide additional validity to the questionnaire by comparing the results obtained with those found previously in a fluoridated municipality. Design The FFQ was administered to parents of 398 children residing in a non‐fluoridated community. Constituents of the diet were divided into solids, water and other beverages and their fluoride content was analysed with the electrode. Data were analysed using unpaired t ‐test. Results The mean (± SD ) FI s from solids, water and other beverages were 0.009 ± 0.004, 0.001 ± 0.001 and 0.007 ± 0.007 mg F /kg body weight/day, respectively, totalling 0.017 ± 0.009 mg F /kg body weight/day. Total FI from food/beverage items ingested in the non‐fluoridated area was significantly lower than that observed in a study previously conducted in a fluoridated area ( P < 0.0001). Conclusions This result reinforces the use of the FFQ as a promising alternative to duplicate diet in order to estimate FI in children in this age range, with potential application in broad epidemiological surveys.