Aim: The role of infant nutrition in rapid weight gain (RWG) is not well understood. This study investigated associations between milk cereal drinks, early RWG, and later body mass index (BMI) and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR).
Methods: In total, 1333 children, from three communities in Western Sweden constituted the combined IDEFICS-I.
Dietary diversity (DD) plays a crucial role in fostering high-quality diets, but its association with health outcomes, particularly body adiposity and non-communicable diseases (NCDs), is inconsistent. This may be due to a lack of a standardized method for estimating DD. Our study investigates the association between two DD indices, namely the dietary diversity score (DDS) and food variety score (FVS), and anthropometric measures, biochemical parameters, and diet quality in a large population sample from the I.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThere is scarce information on the influence of dairy consumption between main meals on the overall diet quality through childhood, constituting the main aim of this research. From the Identification and prevention of Dietary- and lifestyle induced health EFfects In Children and infantS (IDEFICS) study, and based on the data availability in each period due to drop outs, 8807 children aged 2 to 9.9 years from eight European countries at baseline (T0: 2007-2008); 5085 children after two years (T1); and 1991 after four years (T3), were included in these analyses.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInformation on familial resemblance is important for the design of effective family-based interventions. We aimed to quantify familial correlations and estimate the proportion of variation attributable to genetic and shared environmental effects (i.e.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study investigated associations between timing of solid food introduction and childhood obesity and explored maternal characteristics influencing early feeding practices. Cross-sectional data from children 2-9 years (n = 10,808; 50.5% boys) residing in 8 European countries of the IDEFICS study (2007-2008) were included.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: Exposure to breastfeeding improves the survival, health, and development of children; therefore, breast milk is recommended as the exclusive nutrient source for feeding term infants during the first 6 months. This cross-sectional study aimed to determine the possible association between exposure to exclusive breastfeeding and physical fitness performance in children and, if so, whether this association is influenced by the breastfeeding duration.
Methods: A total of 2853 (52.
Socio-economic inequalities in childhood can determine dietary patterns, and therefore future health. This study aimed to explore associations between social vulnerabilities and dietary patterns assessed at two time points, and to investigate the association between accumulation of vulnerabilities and dietary patterns. A total of 9301 children aged 2-9 years participated at baseline and 2-year follow-up examinations of the Identification and prevention of Dietary- and lifestyle-induced health EFfects In Children and infantS study.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAims: The aims of this study were to characterize milk cereal drink (MCD) consumption among Swedish children and to investigate the association between MCD and overweight in a longitudinally followed cohort of children over 2 years of age.
Methods: In the Swedish cohort from IDEFICS (Identification and prevention of Dietary- and lifestyle-induced health EFfects In Children and infantS) we examined early feeding practices and weight status when children were aged 2-9 years (2007/2008) and at 2-year follow-up. Weight and height were measured at both time points in 1077 children.
The aim of this study was to investigate the association of breakfast consumption with children's diet quality and cardiometabolic risk factors. Study sample consisted of 1558 children aged 4-8 years from Cyprus. Breakfast frequency was assessed through a parental questionnaire.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground/purpose: The number of dietary exposure assessment studies focussing on children is very limited. Children are however a vulnerable group due to their higher food consumption level per kg body weight. Therefore, the EXPOCHI project aims 1 to create a relational network of individual food consumption databases in children, covering different geographical areas within Europe, and 2 to use these data to assess the usual intake of lead, chromium, selenium and food colours.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The aim of the present work was to evaluate the relationships between socio-demographic, clinical, lifestyle and psychological characteristics and the presence of diabetes mellitus, among elderly individuals without known cardiovascular disease.
Methods: During 2005-2007, 1190 elderly (aged 65 to 100 years) men and women (from Cyprus, Mitilini, Samothraki, Cephalonia, Crete, Lemnos, Corfu and Zakynthos) were enrolled. Socio-demographic, clinical and lifestyle factors were assessed using standard procedures.
Objective: To examine whether dietary changes and the consumption of dairy products fortified with calcium and vitamin D3 versus the use of a calcium supplement alone could have any effect on anthropometric and body composition indices of postmenopausal women over a 12-month period.
Methods: 101 healthy postmenopausal women were randomized to a dietary intervention group (DG: n=39), receiving approximately 1200 mg of calcium and 7.5 microg of vitamin D3 per day via fortified dairy products and attending biweekly dietary and lifestyle intervention sessions; a calcium supplemented group (CaG: n=26) receiving a total of 1200 mg calcium per day; and a control group who continued with their usual diet (CG: n=36).
Unlabelled: The aim of this work was to evaluate the level of adherence to the traditional Mediterranean diet among 1190 elderly adults living in the Greek islands and Cyprus.
Methodology: The retrieved information included demographic, bio-clinical and dietary characteristics.
Results: The level of adherence to this dietary pattern was 61% in both men and women.
Aims: The purpose of this paper is to explore the link between symptoms of depression and the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors in older adults.
Methods: During 2005, 136 older men and 164 women from various parts of Cyprus agreed to participate in the study. The sampling was random and multistage (according to age-sex distribution of the referent population).
There are only a few studies assessing the nutrient intake of Greek children in the literature. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the nutrient adequacy of the diets of a representative sample of 2,374 toddlers and preschoolers with full anthropometric and dietary intake data. Usual nutrient intakes were calculated after adjusting raw data for within-person variance and correcting for underreporting.
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