title: Dietary recommendations for infants and toddlers among pediatric dentists in North Carolina.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purposes of this study were to: describe practice patterns, knowledge, and attitudes of pediatric dentists in North Carolina (N.C.) in delivering dietary recommendations to the parents/caregivers of infants and toddlers; and identify barriers that limit the implementation of related recommendations.
  
  
  METHODS
  Our survey instrument included 30 questions covering eight domains of barriers to guideline adherence. Surveys were mailed to 150 practicing pediatric dentists in N.C. Descriptive and bivariate analyses were performed. Exploratory factor analysis was used to identify subscales and inform the multivariable model.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The response rate was 57 percent (86/150), 80 percent of whom reported providing infant and toddler feeding recommendations routinely. Knowledge of and agreement with the recommendation regarding breast-feeding duration was lower than that for bottle-feeding recommendations. Stepwise logistic regression analysis indicated that survey respondents were less likely to provide dietary recommendations regularly to the parents/caregivers of infants and toddlers when they have practice constraints and the respondents disagree with American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) recommendations on bottle and juice consumption.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Most respondents routinely provide dietary recommendations to the parents/caregivers of infants and toddlers. Disagreement with AAP and AAPD recommendations on bottle, and juice consumption as well as practice constraints impedes practitioners from providing dietary recommendations regularly to the parents/caregivers of infants and toddlers.
authors.affiliation: National University Health System, Singapore. chienjoo@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Chien J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Sim
authors.affiliation: New York State Oral Health Center of Excellence, Rochester, N.Y., USA.
authors.forename: Hiroko
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Iida
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Dentistry, School of Dentistry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, N.C., USA.
authors.forename: William F
authors.initials: WF
authors.lastname: Vann
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Dentistry, School of Dentistry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, N.C., USA.
authors.forename: Rocio B
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Quinonez
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, N.C., USA.
authors.forename: Michael J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Steiner
mesh_terms: D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D001628:Beverages; D001903:Bottle Feeding; D001942:Breast Feeding; D002664:Child Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003376:Counseling; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003815:Dentists / Q000523:psychology; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D019983:Guideline Adherence; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D009657:North Carolina; D018673:Nutrition Policy; D010377:Pediatric Dentistry; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D019239:Practice Patterns, Dentists'