Exploring Maternal Socio-Demographic Factors Shaping Children’s Dietary Patterns in Brazil: Results from the 2019 National Health Survey

Flávia dos Santos Barbosa Brito (), Emanuela Santos da Costa, Ariane Cristina Thoaldo Romeiro, Debora Martins dos Santos, Alexandre dos Santos Brito, Alessandra Silva Dias de Oliveira and Amanda Rodrigues Amorim Adegboye ()
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Flávia dos Santos Barbosa Brito: Nutrition Institute, Rio de Janeiro State University, São Francisco Xavier Street, 524, Rio de Janeiro 20550-900, Brazil
Emanuela Santos da Costa: Nutrition Institute, Rio de Janeiro State University, São Francisco Xavier Street, 524, Rio de Janeiro 20550-900, Brazil
Ariane Cristina Thoaldo Romeiro: Centro Universitário Serra dos Órgãos, Teresópolis 25964-004, Brazil
Debora Martins dos Santos: Nutrition Institute, Rio de Janeiro State University, São Francisco Xavier Street, 524, Rio de Janeiro 20550-900, Brazil
Alexandre dos Santos Brito: Instituto de Estudos em Saúde Coletiva, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941-598, Brazil
Alessandra Silva Dias de Oliveira: Nutrition Institute, Rio de Janeiro State University, São Francisco Xavier Street, 524, Rio de Janeiro 20550-900, Brazil
Amanda Rodrigues Amorim Adegboye: Centre for Agroecology, Water and Resilience (CAWR), Coventry University, Coventry CV8 3LG, UK

IJERPH, 2024, vol. 21, issue 8, 1-12

Abstract: This study aimed to identify the dietary patterns of Brazilian children aged 6–23 months and to investigate their association with maternal socio-demographic factors. Data from the 2019 Brazilian National Health Survey were used in this cross-sectional study. Mothers of 1616 children aged 6–23 months reported on their children’s dietary intake. Dietary patterns were identified using principal component analysis, and their associations with maternal socio-demographic characteristics were assessed using linear regression models. The first consisted of healthy patterns and the second, unhealthy ones. Linear regression showed that adherence to a healthy dietary pattern was higher among children of mothers who were older (β = 0.02, p = 0.01), had more years of education (β = 0.49, p = 0.04), reported living with a partner (β = 0.29, p = 0.01), and resided in an urban area (β = 0.35, p = 0.01). Conversely, adherence to the unhealthy pattern was positively associated with mothers who declared themselves as black or brown (β = 0.25, p = 0.03). Our results show that older mothers with higher levels of education and paid work and who live with a partner are more likely to contribute to their children’s healthy eating patterns. We conclude that socio-demographic factors may influence the quality of the food offered to children. Nevertheless, advocating for public policies promoting nutritious complementary diets emphasising fresh and minimally processed foods remains crucial for children whose mothers do not possess these favourable socio-demographic characteristics.

Keywords: child nutrition; complementary feeding; dietary pattern; socio-demographic factors; mothers (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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