Validity of a 2-item screening tool to identify families at risk for food insecurity in Brazil.

This manuscript aimed to develop a brief 2-item screening tool to identify Brazilian households that include families with children at risk for food insecurity. Psychometric analyses including sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive value, accuracy, and ROC curves were used to test combinations of questions to determine the most effective screener to assess households at risk for food insecurity when compared to a gold standard scale. Participants included Brazilian National Survey of Demography and Health on Women and Children (PNDS) surveyed households with a valid Brazilian Food Insecurity Scale (EBIA) response.

[Primary Health Care-Sensitive Hospitalizations in children under one year of age, from 2008 to 2014, in the State of São Paulo, Brazil].

The scope of this article is to describe the trends of primary health care-sensitive (PHC) hospitalizations in children under one year of age between 2008 and 2014 in the State of São Paulo, Brazil. It is an ecological study with descriptive and analytical characteristics, based on secondary data from the national health information system. Hospitalizations were classified according to the Brazilian list of PHC hospitalizations considering the Early Neonatal, Late Neonatal and Post-Neonatal age groups.

Maternal pressure to eat: Associations with maternal and child characteristics among 2-to 8-year-olds in Brazil.

Maternal pressure for the child to eat may have counterproductive effects on child's eating behavior, such as impairing their ability to self-regulate intake and generating greater refusal of the pressured foods. Associated factors with this feeding practice are still poorly studied. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between the use of pressure to eat by mothers and anthropometric, sociodemographic and behavioral characteristics of mothers and their children.

Parents Matter: Associations of Parental BMI and Feeding Behaviors With Child BMI in Brazilian Preschool and School-Aged Children.

Brazil is undergoing nutritional transition and rates of obesity in preschool and school-aged children are increasing. Excess weight in the first years of life could predict excess weight in adulthood, making it essential to study risk factors in this population. Our goal was to investigate associations of parent feeding behaviors, as well as more distal familial influences including family SES and maternal and paternal weight, with BMI -score in preschool and school-aged children in a Brazilian sample.

Relationships between parent feeding behaviors and parent and child characteristics in Brazilian preschoolers: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Eating habits formed in early childhood are influenced by parental feeding behaviors, warranting investigation of predictors and correlates of parent feeding. We aimed to describe relationships between parental feeding practices and parent and child characteristics in a sample of Brazilian preschoolers.

Methods: Four hundred and two parents of preschoolers enrolled in private schools of São Paulo and Campinas, Brazil, completed a Brazilian version of the Comprehensive Feeding Practices Questionnaire, as well as questions about parental attitudes, child food intake, other obesity-associated behaviors, and socioeconomic and demographic characteristics.

Sociodemographic, anthropometric and behavioural risk factors for ultra-processed food consumption in a sample of 2-9-year-olds in Brazil.

Objective: The present study aimed to identify food patterns among 2-9-year-olds and investigate sociodemographic, anthropometric and behavioural predictors of less healthy dietary patterns.

Design: Cross-sectional study. Parents of 2-9-year-olds completed an FFQ and factor analysis was applied to identify dietary patterns.

Validation of the comprehensive feeding practices questionnaire in parents of preschool children in Brazil.

Background: Recent national surveys in Brazil have demonstrated a decrease in the consumption of traditional food and a parallel increase in the consumption of ultra-processed food, which has contributed to a rise in obesity prevalence in all age groups. Environmental factors, especially familial factors, have a strong influence on the food intake of preschool children, and this has led to the development of psychometric scales to measure parents' feeding practices. The aim of this study was to test the validity of a translated and adapted Comprehensive Feeding Practices Questionnaire in a sample of Brazilian preschool-aged children enrolled in private schools.

Correlation between hemoglobin levels of mothers and children on exclusive breastfeeding in the first six months of life.

Objective: To evaluate the correlation between hemoglobin levels of mothers and their children on exclusive breastfeeding in the first six months of life.

Methods: Cross-sectional study with 221 binomials (mother-child) enrolled in a breastfeeding support program, who were stratified into six groups according to the children's age group. The sample consisted of children born at term with normal weight, with no neonatal complications and whose mothers did not have anemia or infectious disease at the time of data collection.

Secular trends in infant mortality by age-group and avoidable components in the State of São Paulo, 1996-2012.

Objective: To describe trends and composition of infant mortality rate in the State of São Paulo, from 1996 to 2012.

Methods: An ecological study was conducted, based on official secondary data of births and infant deaths of residents in São Paulo, from 1996 to 2012. The infant mortality rate was calculated by the direct method and was analyzed by graphs and polynomial regression models for age groups (early neonatal, late neonatal and post-neonatal) and for groups of avoidable causes of death.

Validation of the Comprehensive Feeding Practices Questionnaire among Brazilian Families of School-Aged Children.

Introduction: Children's eating behaviors are influenced by parents, who are the first nutritional educators. The comprehensive feeding practices questionnaire (CFPQ) was developed to measure feeding practices among parents, but has not yet been validated in Brazil, where child obesity rates are steeply increasing. The aim of the study was to test the validity of the CFPQ among Brazilian parents of school-aged children and propose a new version of the instrument.

[The inclusion of nutritionists in Primary Health Care: a proposal for a matrix model of nutritional care].

Nutritionists were integrated into the Family Health Support Centers back in 2008. Focusing on the development of technical and pedagogical support and assistance to Family Health Teams, the aim of this study was to develop a proposal for a matrix model for nutrition aimed at women and children in the Family Health Strategy. The study was conducted in a Basic Health Unit and was divided into Cycle I, including interviews with families of 0 to 6-year-old children to establish the confines of the territory; and Cycles II and III, with the development of intersectorial field activities to promote food and nutritional security based on matrix support.

[Factors associated with the consumption of soft drinks among Brazilian preschool children: national survey of 2006].

The rising consumption of sweetened beverages such as soft drinks or artificial juices is associated with the prevalence of obesity in Brazil and around the world. This study seeks to verify the frequency of consumption of these beverages among Brazilian children aged 24-59 months and to investigate the association of soft drinks with demographic, socioeconomic and nutritional variables. Using data from the National Survey on Demography and Health of Women and Children - 2006, the eating habits were obtained using the food and drink frequency questionnaire for the seven days preceding the interview, and anthropometry recorded the weight and height of children.

Challenges in the management of nutritional disorders and communicable diseases in child day care centers: a quantitative and qualitative approach.

In Brazil, although many children from low income families attend day care centers with appropriate hygiene practices and food programs, they have nutritional disorders and communicable diseases. This quantitative and qualitative cross-sectional study identified staff challenges in child day care centers and suggested alternative activity management to prevent nutritional disorders and communicable diseases. The study included 71 nursery teachers and 270 children from public and philanthropic day care centers (teacher to child ratios of 1:2.

Anthropometric indices and exclusive breastfeeding in the first six months of life: a comparison with reference standards NCHS, 1977 and WHO, 2006.

Background: There is a gap in knowledge on the growth of children exclusively breastfed during the fifth and sixth months of life. This study aimed to assess the growth of infants who were exclusively breastfed for the first 6 months of life and compare the distributions of anthropometric measures based on the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS, 1977) and World Health Organization (WHO, 2006) curves.

Methods: Cross-sectional study that measured the weight and length of 360 healthy and exclusively breastfed infants who were enrolled in a primary care program in Belem, Brazil from October 2006 to December 2008.

[Introduction of soft drinks and processed juice in the diet of infants attending public day care centers].

Objective:: Identifying at what age infants enrolled in public day care centers are introduced to soft drinks and industrialized juice, as well as comparing the nutritional composition of these goods with natural fruit juice.

Methods:: A cross-sectional study with the mothers of 636 children (aged 0 to 36 months) from nurseries of day care centers, who were asked questions about the age of feeding introduction. This study evaluated the proximate composition of soft drinks and artificial juice, comparing them with those of natural fruit juice regarding energy, sugar, fiber, vitamin C, and sodium values.

Prevalence and determinants of vitamin A deficiency among Brazilian children under 2 years of age from the 2006 National Demographic Health Survey.

Background: Vitamin A deficiency is prevalent among infants, primarily in undeveloped communities, compromising immune system competence and raising morbidity and mortality rates. Understanding the risk factors associated with vitamin A deficiency is essential to create informed health policies.

Objective: To identify and quantify risk factors for vitamin A deficiency in a probabilistic sample of children under 2 years of age participating in a national survey in Brazil and to provide a comprehensive risk factor model to inform health strategies and policies.

[Food insecurity in Brazilian families with children under five years of age].

This article analyzes food insecurity and hunger in Brazilian families with children under five years of age. This was a nationally representative cross-sectional study using data from the National Demographic and Health Survey on Women and Children (PNDS-2006), in which the outcome variable was moderate to severe food insecurity, measured by the Brazilian Food Insecurity Scale (EBIA). Prevalence estimates and prevalence ratios were generated with 95% confidence intervals.

[Socio-demographic and nutritional characteristics of Brazilian children under 2 years of age who were beneficiaries of conditional cash transfer programs in 2006].

The conditional cash transfer programs (PTCR) seek to combat poverty and hunger and to ensure food security. Children under the age of two of beneficiary families are more vulnerable to environmental conditions. This study seeks to describe this population according to socio-economic, demographic and nutritional variables.

[Diagnosis of complementary feeding practices for creating a matrix model for action in primary health care].

Timely and appropriate complementary feeding is essential for the healthy growth and development of children, and Primary Health Care, especially the Family Health Support Nuclei, are the ideal location for developing relevant actions during this period. A cross-sectional study that applied a questionnaire to mothers and anthropometric evaluation for 324 children sought to develop an index of complementary feeding inadequacies and to study its association with social, economic, clinical, epidemiological and nutritional variables. For quantification of feeding inadequacies, an index using the Delphi method was created.

The effect of school-based physical activity interventions on body mass index: a meta-analysis of randomized trials.

This study reviewed the effectiveness of school-based physical activity interventions aimed at reducing overweight, obesity and hypertension in children. We searched 14 databases and analyzed studies published between April 2009 and September 2012. Only randomized controlled trials performed at the school level that included elements of physical activity but did not include nutritional co-interventions were analyzed.

[Birth weight in Brazilian children under two years of age].

Low birth weight is associated with increased risk of dying in the first year of life. This study was motivated by recent changes in the determination of birth weight patterns with the advent of the perinatal epidemiological transition. We analyzed data from the Brazilian National Survey of Demographic and Health of Children and Women including only children < 24 months.

The effect of participation in school-based nutrition education interventions on body mass index: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled community trials.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of school-based nutrition education interventions in reducing or preventing overweight and obesity among children and adolescents.

Methods: We conducted a systematic search of 14 databases until May 2010 and cross-reference check in 8 systematic reviews (SRs) for studies published that described randomized controlled trials conducted in schools to reduce or prevent overweight in children and adolescents. An additional search was carried out using PubMed for papers published through May 2012, and no further papers were identified.

[Perceptions of day care center teachers about daily practices of infant feeding: the impact of training].

This article stresses the importance of the qualification of professionals involved in the feeding of children in daycare centers, such that they offer adequate food and programs are developed in order to foster healthy food habits in infants from birth. Thus, the scope of this paper was to evaluate the impact of a training program for these daycare teachers in their perceptions and practices in infant feeding. A qualitative approach was used to evaluate the impact of training, with the application of the focus group technique.

Risk Factors for Anemia among Brazilian Infants from the 2006 National Demographic Health Survey.

Iron deficiency is an important public health problem. An understanding of anemia risk factors is essential to informed health policies. We performed a cross-sectional study of 1,382 infants from the 2006 Brazilian National Survey on Demography and the Health of Women and Children.

Double-blind randomized controlled trial of rolls fortified with microencapsulated iron.

Objective: To evaluate the impact of the fortification of rolls with microencapsulated iron sulfate with sodium alginate on the hemoglobin levels in preschoolers as compared to controls.

Methods: Double-blind randomized controlled trial comprised of children aged 2 to 6 years with initial hemoglobin exceeding 9 g/dL from four not-for-profit daycares randomly selected in the city of São Paulo - Brazil. Children of 2 daycares (n = 88) received rolls with fortified wheat flour as the exposed group (EC) and children of 2 daycares (n = 85) received rolls without fortification as the control group (CG) over a 24-week period.