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Is a fat-avoidance scale a useful tool for monitoring and tracking dietary fat selections of adults and children? Using a seven-point scale, we addressed this question with 341 preschool children and 421 of their parents participating in a longitudinal study of childhood behaviors in San Diego County, California. Milk type and cooking fat reported in the fat-avoidance scale was compared with data reported in a 24-hour food intake record. An overall 86% agreement for milk type and a 78% agreement for cooking fat were noted. Anglo preschoolers (n = 143) had significantly greater mean scores for fat and cholesterol avoidance than did Mexican-American preschoolers (n = 198). Anglo, but not Mexican-American, women avoided fat and cholesterol more often than did their male counterparts. A significantly higher sum score was noted for Anglo men and women and Mexican-American men as education increased. These findings indicate that the fat-avoidance scale has a relative validity compared with a 1-day food record, that fat avoidance can be measured, that differences can be noted in a biethnic sample of children and adults, and that the scale has potential for monitoring success in achieving a lower fat and cholesterol intake.

Although differences in hemoglobin levels between blacks and whites may be due in part to genetic influences, low hemoglobin levels in black girls of childbearing age may nevertheless constitute a health hazard. To study this problem, hemoglobin levels were examined in children of a biracial community not only before but also during and after puberty and menarche. At the same time, 24-hour dietary recalls of a representative group of 13-year-olds in the same population were examined with respect to the intake of iron and nutrients influencing iron absorption. In black girls, hemoglobin levels dropped after menarche, accompanied by a diet marginal in iron and in iron-absorption-promoting nutrients. Questions as to hemoglobin levels compatible with optimum health remain, and racial differences and genetic influences on levels should not be an excuse for failure to address this problem. More investigational studies are also needed to observe responses to an optimum dietary iron intake.

The results of the current study indicate that data obtained by the dietary recall correlate highly with the children's weighed food intake if a parent or the primary caretaker providing the child's food responds to the interview. Meredith et al. found parents to be poor reporters of children's consumption outside the home. It is encouraging to note that parents can be reliable reporters of their children's food intake in the home environment. When errors did occur, they were errors in portion size, as 96% of foods eaten by the children were correctly identified by the parents. Parents under-reported only 4% of the time. This slight tendency to under-report is consistent with other reports of the validity of the 24-hour dietary recall. In younger children, parents appear to be reliable reporters of their children's in-home dietary intake. As children become older, they appear to be able to recall their own intake both within and outside the home. There are several possible explanations for these findings. First, several factors could have influenced the accuracy of parental reports of the child's intake during the day that we weighed foods. Because food was weighed in the homes, the parents undoubtedly attended more closely to their child's diet. Additionally, the dietary recalls were collected at the end of the day of observation. This was closer in time than most 24-hour recalls and may have reflected less memory decay than usual. Also, since our sample was primarily middle-class families who were well educated, the correspondence between actual vs. reported dietary intake may have been artificially enhanced.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

To investigate caffeine intake patterns in children, dietary intakes were examined for a biracial sample of 1,284 infants and children. Twenty-four-hour dietary recalls were completed by parents of children aged 6 months and repeated at ages 1, 2, 3, and 4 years; children 10 years old served as their own respondents and were surveyed at ages 13, 15, and 17 years. The sample was 60% white and 40% black. Additional cohorts of 10-year-olds (no. = 686) were studied for temporal trend. Whites consumed significantly more caffeine than blacks as early as 1 year and persisted at a higher intake level from 2 to 17 years. This trend continued whether intake was measured in total milligrams, milligrams per 1,000 kcal, or milligrams per kilogram body weight. Significant sex differences in caffeine intakes per 1,000 kcal occurred among 15- and 17-year-olds (girls greater than boys). Peak periods of consumption occurred at ages 2, 3, 13, and 17. Snacks contributed large quantities of caffeine, particularly for 10-year-olds. Most frequent sources of caffeine were regular carbonated beverages, chocolate-containing foods, and tea. Mean intakes of caffeine for 10-year-olds were consistent from 1973 to 1982. Those observations document caffeine intakes beginning early in life.

Chemical analysis of food actually eaten would be the most accurate method for analyzing the diets of children, but this technique is not feasible for most nutrition staffs. An improved 24-hr. dietary recall can be used by a small, well trained staff to collect more reliable data on a large number of school children. Vigilant monitoring of school lunch operations, incorporation of known recipes in the ETNV, and organizing probing techniques are necessary to insure the reliability of the tool. The low coefficients of variation of duplicate recalls noted in the study indicate that the error of measurement between interviewers is small, if the tool is carefully tested and sophisticated before use in the field and if observers are carefully trained by a written protocol.

A survey of children for cardiovascular risk factor variables has determined serum lipids and lipoproteins on some 5,000 children from birth through adolescence. Dietary studies have been conducted on a selected sample. Considerable variability of the serum lipids and lipoproteins occurs with significant relationships to age, race, and sex. Serum lipoproteins are altered with obesity especially in white children and a correlation of dietary intake of fat by infants and children had been noted with serum lipids and lipoproteins. A consistent ranking over time or tracking of the serum lipids and lipoproteins, especially beta-lipoprotein, occurs, and a clustering of multirisk factors including high levels of serum total cholesterol and beta-lipoproteins can be observed, especially in the older children. The trend toward increasing interrelationship of multirisk factors suggests an increasing environmental impact with age. The relationships of dietary components with risk factor variables are of a low order, even though children are consuming a relatively high fat, high cholesterol, high salt diet. Dietary factors are potentially the major environmental influence on the high incidence of coronary artery disease. The evidence of the relationship of diet to the serum lipid levels in children warrants further investigation in an effort to understand the precise role of diet in the prevention of adult cardiovascular disease.

Electrolyte and mineral intakes assessed by 24-hour dietary recall were examined for race and sex differences in cohorts of infants and school-age children at 6 months and at 1, 2, 3, 4, 10, 13, 15, and 17 years. A fourfold increase in sodium intake occurred from 6 months to 4 years, and potassium intake doubled. Sodium increased from 0.88 gm at 6 months to 3.21 gm at 4 years and 3.67 gm by 17 years; a slight increase for potassium was noted from 4 to 17 years for boys. Calcium intake was relatively constant from 6 months to 17 years. Boys had higher intakes of sodium and sodium per kilogram body weight than did girls. Black children at 2, 3, and 4 years had significantly higher sodium, potassium, calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium expressed as total intake and per kilogram body weight than white children did. At 6 months, 66% of the infants exceeded the National Research Council's recommended range for sodium. At 1 to 10 years, 90% to 100% and at 13 to 17 years, 60% to 65% exceeded the recommended range. In contrast, 58% to 77% of preschool children and only 5% to 20% of school-age children surpassed the recommended potassium range. Fifty percent to 70% of children more than 10 years old achieved the recommended range for potassium. Approximately half of the children 6 months through 4 years of age met the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for calcium. Sixty percent to 80% of adolescents ingested less than two-thirds the RDA. Girls had lower intakes than did boys.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)