Associação entre a introdução de alimentos não recomendados no primeiro ano de vida e o excesso de peso em crianças em vulnerabilidade social

Abstract

Excess weight in childhood is related to several factors, mainly to an environment that promotes excessive and early intake of ultra-processed foods. The objective of this study was to identify whether there is an association between foods considered not recommended to be introduced in the first year of life and excess weight in children who live in a situation of social vulnerability. This cross-sectional study evaluated the current nutritional status and the introduction of 14 different foods in the first year of life of children aged between 12 and 59 months. A total of 561 children living in subnormal agglomerations of Maceió-Alagoas were studied. It was possible to identify that 89.8% of the children had consumed at least one of the foods evaluated in the first year of life, the most frequent being petit suisse cheese (72.4%), sweet/salty biscuits (64.7%), and sugar (64.0%). Excess weight was found in 19.1% of the children, and 8.0% already had obesity. In the multivariable analysis, adjusted for the child's age, breastfeeding, mother's race, being a beneficiary of the Bolsa Família program, and per capita income, an association was identified between the early introduction of soft drinks (PR = 1.34, 95%CI: 1.02; 1 .76), packaged snacks (RP = 1.25, 95%CI: 1.01; 1.56) and powdered soft drink (RP = 0.54, 95%CI: 0.38; 0.77) with the excess weight of children. From the results found, there is a need to intensify public health policies in the fight against childhood obesity, focusing on the promotion of adequate and healthy food, especially during the food introduction phase, focusing on the population of social vulnerability.