title: Patterns of early dietary exposures have implications for maternal and child weight outcomes.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This article examines relations between patterns of dietary exposures at 9 months and infant and maternal weight status at 1 year postpartum.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants were part of the Infant Feeding Practices Study II and included 1807 mothers participating through the first year postpartum. All data were self-reported monthly by mothers. Latent class analysis was conducted to identify patterns of infant dietary exposures at 9 months. Factors that predicted dietary pattern class membership were examined including infant sleep and parity. Dietary pattern membership was used to predict child and maternal weight outcomes at 1 year postpartum.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Five patterns of dietary exposures were identified, characterized by differences in milk-feeding and solid foods at 9 months: "Breastfed Fruits and Vegetables," "Breastfed Low Variety," "Formula-Fed Fruits and Vegetables," "Formula-Fed Low Variety," and "Mixed High Energy Density." Infants in the Mixed High Energy Density dietary pattern were more likely to be overweight at 1 year.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Dietary classes that capture different combinations of several aspects of infant feeding may be more useful than single dietary predictors, for example, breastfeeding, formula-feeding, or early introduction to solids, to describe differences in infants' early dietary experience and risk for overweight.
authors.affiliation: Center for Childhood Obesity Research, The Pennsylvania State University, State College, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: Chelsea M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Rose
authors.affiliation: Center for Childhood Obesity Research, The Pennsylvania State University, State College, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: Jennifer S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Savage
authors.affiliation: Department of Foods and Nutrition, The University of Georgia, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
authors.forename: Leann L
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Birch
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001835:Body Weight; D001942:Breast Feeding / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D004032:Diet / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D005518:Food Preferences; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007227:Infant Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; D009035:Mothers / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D063766:Pediatric Obesity / Q000517:prevention & control; D049590:Postpartum Period / Q000502:physiology*; D011247:Pregnancy