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Food Intake and Nutrition Assessment in Children: Focus on Healthy...
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Food Intake and Nutrition Assessment in Children: Focus on Healthy Growth

A special issue of Children (ISSN 2227-9067). This special issue belongs to the section "Global and Public Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 April 2023) | Viewed by 17064

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Ayoub Al-Jawaldeh

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Regional Advisor at World Health Organization for Eastern Mediterranean Region, Cairo, Egypt
Interests: nutrition; human nutrition; nutrition assessment; nutritional education; insulin resistance; metabolism; metabolic diseases; nutritional and metabolic diseases; glucose metabolism; lipid metabolism

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Nutrition is a critical part of health and development. Better nutrition is related to improved infant, child, and maternal health; stronger immune systems; safer pregnancy and childbirth; lower risk of non-communicable diseases (such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease); and longevity. Healthy children learn better. People with adequate nutrition are more productive and can create opportunities to gradually break the cycles of poverty and hunger.

Malnutrition, in every form, presents significant threats to human health. Today the world faces a double burden of malnutrition that includes both undernutrition and overweight, especially in low- and middle-income countries. There are multiple forms of malnutrition, including undernutrition (wasting or stunting), inadequate vitamins or minerals, overweight, obesity, and resulting diet-related noncommunicable diseases.

A comprehensive nutrition assessment that includes food and nutrition-related history, anthropometric measurements, biochemical data, medical tests and procedures, nutrition-focused physical findings, and patient history should be completed on these patients as no one parameter is a comprehensive indicator of nutrition status. Anthropometric measurements provide important information on the growth and nutrition status of a child, yet many times it is difficult to get accurate and valid measurements due to physical limitations of the child or improper technique. Basic growth assessment involves measuring a child’s weight and length or height and comparing these measurements to growth standards. The purpose is to determine whether a child is growing “normally” or has a growth problem or trend towards a growth problem that should be addressed

Childhood stunting is an outcome of maternal undernutrition and inadequate infant and young child feeding (IYCF), a correlate of impaired neurocognitive development, and a risk marker for non-communicable diseases and reduced productivity in later life. The ambitious World Health Assembly (WHA) target to achieve, by 2025, a 40% reduction in the number of under-five stunted children has provided a focus and rallying point for commitments by national governments and international development partners.

To grow and develop optimally, children need to receive nurturing care. This means that they enjoy adequate nutrition and good health, feel safe and secure, and have opportunities for learning starting from birth. Exclusive breastfeeding, immunization, and timely care during illness all contribute to a child’s healthy growth and development. Clean air, water and sanitation, and safe places for play and recreation are likewise important for young children to explore and learn.

The aim of this Special Issue is to collect research studies based on nationally representative surveys, aimed to investigate the healthy growth with difference in food, energy, and nutrient intake between different subgroups of the children population, and to identify subgroups at risk for a deficient or excessive intake of specific foods or nutrients; to evaluate the anthropometry, physical activity and sedentary behaviour in relation to food and nutrient intake; explore the relationships between family characteristics, food practices, eating context, and diet quality or single foods/food groups consumption, such as fruits and vegetables, dairy products, snack foods, ultra-processed foods.

Dr. Ayoub Al-Jawaldeh
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Children is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • nutrition assessment
  • healthy growth
  • dietary surveys
  • anthropometric measures
  • dietary intake
  • nutritional status
  • lifestyle
  • population-based surveys
  • dietary assessment methods

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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9 pages, 267 KiB  
Article
The Relationship between Certain Parental/Household Socio-Economic Characteristics and Female Adolescent Obesity in Montenegro
by Pavle Malovic, Erol Vrevic, Dragan Bacovic, Danilo Bojanic and Milovan Ljubojevic
Children 2023, 10(5), 820; https://doi.org/10.3390/children10050820 - 30 Apr 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1208
Abstract
Background: Considering that obesity is characterized today as a public health challenge and an epidemic in many countries in the world and that one of the main predictors for obesity is socio-economic status (SES), the aim of this paper was to assess the [...] Read more.
Background: Considering that obesity is characterized today as a public health challenge and an epidemic in many countries in the world and that one of the main predictors for obesity is socio-economic status (SES), the aim of this paper was to assess the relationship between the SES of parents/guardians and female adolescent obesity in Montenegro. Methods: A stratified random probability sample method was used, and the number of participants in this study was 596, aged 15.8 ± 0.58, from all three regions in Montenegro. As SES was a factor in this research, specific SES parameters such as household wealth and parental educational level were collected for parent/guardian of each child. The following anthropometric indices were utilized to evaluate nutritional status: body mass index (BMI) and waist to height ratio (WHtR). Results: Regarding nutritional status, it can be said that no statistically significant difference between female adolescents according to the regions of Montenegro was found. Of all the adolescents in the study, 15.4% of them were above the normal nutrition level as measured by BMI, while 12.2% were classified as obese by the WHtR. Furthermore, the study found a significant negative relationship between a mother’s level of education and obesity in female adolescents, with odds ratios of 0.31 (p = 0.035) and 0.19 (p = 0.009) for secondary and high level education, respectively. This suggests that daughters of mothers with higher levels of education are less likely to be obese. Conclusions: In regard to the nutritional status of the respondents in this study, their values fell within the normal range compared to the European average. However, the results regarding the relationship between certain SES characteristics and obesity suggest a similarity to developed countries. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Intake and Nutrition Assessment in Children: Focus on Healthy Growth)
11 pages, 1276 KiB  
Article
The Preventable Effect of Taekwondo Sport among Cadets and Junior’ Bone Mineral Density: DEXA Assessment
by Hadeel Ali Ghazzawi, Adam Tawfiq Amawi, Hamza Alduraidi, Malik Juweid, Hussam H. Alhawari, Mousa A. Al-Abbadi, Ali M. Alabbadi and Lana Salah Subhi AlNemer
Children 2023, 10(1), 170; https://doi.org/10.3390/children10010170 - 15 Jan 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2285
Abstract
Athletes competing in Taekwondo (TKD), the weight-category sport, tend to rapidly lose weight to achieve the desired body weight for better competitive results. Little is known about the effect of rapid weight reduction on bone mass density (BMD), especially during childhood and adolescence. [...] Read more.
Athletes competing in Taekwondo (TKD), the weight-category sport, tend to rapidly lose weight to achieve the desired body weight for better competitive results. Little is known about the effect of rapid weight reduction on bone mass density (BMD), especially during childhood and adolescence. The current study aimed to investigate the impact of rapid weight loss on BMD among cadets and juniors TKD athletes. A descriptive case series study design was conducted and collected from 28 males and females aged 12–17 years old, with mean age 14.4 ± 1.7. Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) was used for both BMD and body composition assessment, and laboratory tests were also performed for the total calcium (Ca), TSH, free T4 (FT4), and 25-OH-vitamin D. Results showed normal levels of Ca (82.1%), TSH (96.4%), and FT4 (96.4%), whilst 85.7% had vitamin D deficiency. DEXA results showed that within male athletes, juniors had a wider range of BMD than cadets, while within females, results did not vary, with no statistical difference between both males and females. Our results suggested that children and adolescents’ BMD was positively related to TKD sport regardless of the abnormal weight loss strategies used, as evidenced by laboratory results. Children and adolescents should be conscious and practice TKD sport adopting healthy weight loss behaviors. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Intake and Nutrition Assessment in Children: Focus on Healthy Growth)
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13 pages, 292 KiB  
Article
Assessment of Feeding Behaviors and Parents’ Frustrations of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder in Lebanon: A Case-Control Study
by Melissa Rouphael, Batoul Hojeij, Diana Ezzedine, Hussein Mortada, Yonna Sacre, Tania Bitar, Elissa Naim, Walid Hleihel and Maha Hoteit
Children 2023, 10(1), 117; https://doi.org/10.3390/children10010117 - 05 Jan 2023
Viewed by 2708
Abstract
Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) exhibit restrictive and repetitive behaviors that affect their eating habits. The purpose of this study is to identify the behavioral feeding problems and eating habits among ASD children compared to typically developed (TD) children age/gender-matched controls, along [...] Read more.
Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) exhibit restrictive and repetitive behaviors that affect their eating habits. The purpose of this study is to identify the behavioral feeding problems and eating habits among ASD children compared to typically developed (TD) children age/gender-matched controls, along with their parents’/caregivers’ strategies for dealing with them. It included 43 ASD children and 43 TD children aged two to eleven years. The analysis was performed based on two valid questionnaires: the Behavior Pediatrics Feeding Assessment Scale (BPFA) and “My Child Eating Habits” (MCEH). The BPFA and MCEH scores conceded three manifestations that fall into food selectivity and problematic mealtime behavior in both groups of children. Compared to TD children, children with ASD exhibited higher BPFA scores, which indicated food-related behavioral and skill-based problems (p = 0.004). Children with ASD were less likely to consume fruits, vegetables, and milk than TD children, which may lead to nutritional deficiencies (p = 0.003, p = 0.003, and p = 0.010, respectively). Parents of ASD children were concerned about their behavioral problems and expressed their intention of an early intervention. These findings highlight the importance of nutritional clinical routines that incorporate the evaluation of the nutritional status and feeding behaviors of ASD children. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Intake and Nutrition Assessment in Children: Focus on Healthy Growth)

Review

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25 pages, 1895 KiB  
Review
Ultra-Processed Food, Reward System and Childhood Obesity
by Valeria Calcaterra, Hellas Cena, Virginia Rossi, Sara Santero, Alice Bianchi and Gianvincenzo Zuccotti
Children 2023, 10(5), 804; https://doi.org/10.3390/children10050804 - 29 Apr 2023
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 5215
Abstract
Obesity and overweight are a major public health problem globally. Diet quality is critical for proper child development, and an unhealthy diet is a preventable risk factor for noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), such as obesity. Consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages and ultra-processed foods (UPFs) in [...] Read more.
Obesity and overweight are a major public health problem globally. Diet quality is critical for proper child development, and an unhealthy diet is a preventable risk factor for noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), such as obesity. Consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages and ultra-processed foods (UPFs) in childhood may increase the BMI/BMI z-score, body fat percentage, or likelihood of overweight. A strict feeding regulation system allows for sufficient food to be consumed to meet ongoing metabolic demands while avoiding overconsumption. This narrative review explores the issues of obesity and the regulation of food intake related to reward systems and UPF consumption. Nutrient composition alone cannot explain the influence of UPFs on the risk of obesity. Furthermore, the non-nutritional properties of UPFs may explain the mechanisms underlying the relationship with obesity and NCDs. UPFs are designed to be highly palatable, appealing, and energy dense with a unique combination of the main taste enhancer ingredients to generate a strong rewarding stimulus and influence the circuits related to feeding facilitation. How individual UPF ingredients influence eating behavior and reward processes remains not fully elucidated. To increase the knowledge on the relationship between UPFs and pediatric obesity, it may be useful to limit the rapid growth in the prevalence of obesity and subsequent related complications, and to develop new strategies for appropriate food and nutrition policies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Intake and Nutrition Assessment in Children: Focus on Healthy Growth)
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28 pages, 3951 KiB  
Review
Nutrition Profile for Countries of the Eastern Mediterranean Region with Different Income Levels: An Analytical Review
by Hanna Leppäniemi, Eman Ibrahim, Marwa M. S. Abbass, Elaine Borghi, Monica C. Flores-Urrutia, Elisa Dominguez Muriel, Giovanna Gatica-Domínguez, Richard Kumapley, Asmus Hammerich and Ayoub Al-Jawaldeh
Children 2023, 10(2), 236; https://doi.org/10.3390/children10020236 - 28 Jan 2023
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 4781
Abstract
The World Health Organization’s (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR) is suffering from a double burden of malnutrition in which undernutrition coexists with rising rates of overweight and obesity. Although the countries of the EMR vary greatly in terms of income level, living conditions [...] Read more.
The World Health Organization’s (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR) is suffering from a double burden of malnutrition in which undernutrition coexists with rising rates of overweight and obesity. Although the countries of the EMR vary greatly in terms of income level, living conditions and health challenges, the nutrition status is often discussed only by using either regional or country-specific estimates. This analytical review studies the nutrition situation of the EMR during the past 20 years by dividing the region into four groups based on their income level—the low-income group (Afghanistan, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen), the lower-middle-income group (Djibouti, Egypt, Iran, Morocco, Pakistan, Palestine, and Tunisia), the upper-middle-income group (Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Libya) and the high-income group (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates)—and by comparing and describing the estimates of the most important nutrition indicators, including stunting, wasting, overweight, obesity, anaemia, and early initiation and exclusive breastfeeding. The findings reveal that the trends of stunting and wasting were decreasing in all EMR income groups, while the percentages of overweight and obesity predominantly increased in all age groups across the income groups, with the only exception in the low-income group where a decreasing trend among children under five years existed. The income level was directly associated with the prevalence rates of overweight and obesity among other age groups except children under five, while an inverse association was observed regarding stunting and anaemia. Upper-middle-income country group showed the highest prevalence rate of overweight among children under five. Most countries of the EMR revealed below-desired rates of early initiation and exclusive breastfeeding. Changes in dietary patterns, nutrition transition, global and local crises, and nutrition policies are among the major explanatory factors for the findings. The scarcity of updated data remains a challenge in the region. Countries need support in filling the data gaps and implementing recommended policies and programmes to address the double burden of malnutrition. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Intake and Nutrition Assessment in Children: Focus on Healthy Growth)
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