Relationship of food frequencies as reported by parents to overweight and obesity at 5 years.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate if food frequencies are related to overweight/obesity in 5-year-old children.


METHODS
During 1997-1999, 21 700 infants were invited to participate in ABIS (All Babies in Southeast Sweden), a prospective, cohort study. Participants were followed from birth (n = 16 058) to 5 years (n = 7356). Food frequencies reported by parents at 2.5 and 5 years were studied in the relation to overweight/obesity at 5 years using multiple logistic regressions. A p-value < 0.01 was considered statistically significant.


RESULTS
At 2.5 years frequencies of intake of cheese were positively associated with overweight/obesity at 5 years while porridge, fried potatoes/french fries and cream/crème fraiche showed a negative association. When adjusting for known risk factors, porridge and fried potatoes/french fries remained negatively associated with overweight/obesity. At 5 years, chocolate and lemonade were positively associated with overweight/obesity whereas cream/crème fraiche, pastries and candy were negatively associated. Candy remained negatively associated to overweight/obesity after adjustment for potential confounders.


CONCLUSIONS
Food frequencies do not offer any simple explanation for overweight/obesity. Porridge at 2.5 years may protect against overweight/obesity at 5 years, while lemonade may contribute to overweight. Our finding that fried potatoes/french fries may protect against overweight/obesity is unexpected and must be interpreted with caution. These findings should be confirmed by prospective studies using objective recordings.
Huus
Karina
K
Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Division of Paediatrics and Diabetes Research Centre, Faculty of Health Sciences, Linköping University, Sweden. karina.huus@hhj.hj.se
Brekke
Hilde K
HK
Ludvigsson
Jonas F
JF
Ludvigsson
Johnny
J
D015992:Body Mass Index; D002099:Cacao; D002611:Cheese; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002523:Edible Grain; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D005518:Food Preferences; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D009749:Nutrition Surveys; D009752:Nutritional Status; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D050177:Overweight / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology