Consumo de alimentos por lactentes do município de Juiz de Fora- MG

Abstract

Exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) in the first six months and adequate complementary feeding are considered fundamental elements for promoting children's health, providing adequate growth and development. The present work aimed to describe the frequencies of times and types of breastfeeding (BF) and associate them with the sociodemographic characteristics of the sample; verify which ultra-processed foods (UPF) were the most consumed and which factors were associated with this consumption; verify the motivations behind the food choices made by their caregivers and evaluate their relationship with sociodemographic characteristics and UPF consumption. This is a cross-sectional study carried out with caregivers of infants cared for in all 37 UBS-ESF in the urban area of the city of Juiz de Fora – MG. Data collection was carried out on the days of childcare consultations, throughout the years 2022 and 2023, by completing a questionnaire composed of questions referring to the caregiver's socioeconomic data, characteristics of the infant (sex, age, skin color ) and infant feeding (breastfeeding and consumption of ultra processed foods), which were prepared based on adaptations of the questionnaire from the National Childhood Food and Nutrition Study. The analyzes were carried out by checking the consistency of the database, using the SPSS version 21.0 program and a significance level of 0.05 was adopted. Initially, descriptive analyzes were carried out, using absolute, relative and median frequencies, using the assumptions of normality. Associations with the breastfeeding variable were tested using Pearson's chi-square test. Verification of associations between UPF consumption and sample characteristics was carried out using Poisson generalized linear regression. And in relation to food choices, the quantitative variables were subjected to the Shapiro-Wilk normality test. To evaluate the difference in means between sociodemographic variables and UPF consumption and food choice factors, the ANOVA test was performed. The sample consisted of 487 caregiver/infant binomials and 37.1% were on continuous BF, 23.3% on exclusive BF. There was a higher prevalence (62.4%) of exclusively breastfed infants in the group of caregivers who had higher education. Associations were also found between breastfeeding duration and higher socioeconomic classes. In relation to UPF consumption, 48.4% had already consumed one or more UPF, with a median consumption of 5 UPF (1-7) and the most consumed food was biscuits (45.2%). The probabilities for UPF consumption were higher for infants older than 12 months, who were on continuous breastfeeding or did not receive breast milk, whose caregivers were male, and whose education was less than complete higher education. Regarding caregivers' food choices, the factor considered most important was health and the least ethical concern. Infants who had not consumed UPF had higher means for almost all factors. It was possible to assess the nutritional situation of the studied population, contributing to the characterization of the nutritional epidemiology of the municipality.