title: Vitamin intake of 3- to 36-month-old German infants and children--results of the DONALD-Study.
abstract: Infants and young children are a vulnerable group with regard to nutrition. However, there is a lack of information about the dietary composition of healthy German infants and children. Therefore, the intake of vitamins (A, C, E, B1, B2, B6, folate, niacin) was assessed in 354 healthy German infants and children aged 3 to 36 months from 3-day-weighed diet records and compared with German, European and US reference values. Intake of all B-vitamins (B1, B2, B6, folate, niacin) increased during the first 3 years of life, whereas intake of vitamin E decreased. Intake of vitamin A and C varied between age groups. The highest levels of the nutrient densities of most vitamins were found at the end of the first year of life. Depending on the reference values chosen, the vitamin supply of the study population ranged between sufficient and very good. The reported satisfactory intake of vitamins in infants and young children in this study gives rise to the question of whether the current extent of fortification of commercial infant food in Germany is necessary.
authors.affiliation: Research Institute of Child Nutrition, Dortmund, Germany.
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Alexy
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kersting
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Sichert-Hellert
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Manz
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Schöch
mesh_terms: D001942:Breast Feeding; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007225:Infant Food; D007227:Infant Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; D008297:Male; D009749:Nutrition Surveys; D012016:Reference Values; D014815:Vitamins
chemical_list: D014815:Vitamins