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Spanish children's diet: compliance with nutrient and food intake guidelines

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 57, pages 930–939 (2003)Cite this article

Abstract

Objective: To compare the diet of Spanish children against the nutrient and food intake guidelines. To calculate an index of overall diet quality and check its validity against nutrient intake.

Design and setting: Cross-sectional study in four cities in Spain, where information on food and nutrient intake was obtained from schoolchildren through a food frequency questionnaire.

Participants: The sample included 1112 children (overall response rate of 85%) attending public and private schools and aged 6–7 y. Children were selected through random cluster sampling in schools, and stratified by sex and socioeconomic level.

Main Outcome Measures: Mean nutrient intake, number of food servings, and the percentage of children who meet recommended nutrient and food-serving intake levels. The overall dietary quality was assessed using the Healthy Eating Index (HEI).

Results: Mean micronutrient intake exceeded 100% of the recommended dietary allowances, except for vitamin B6, which registered a mean intake of 77.1%. For almost all children, intake of saturated fat was above, and that of carbohydrate below, the recommended level, in contrast to the relatively high compliance with the recommendations for poly- and monounsaturated fatty acid, salt and fiber intake (69.7, 43.7, 40.7, and 30.1%, respectively). Consumption of food servings for each of the five American pyramid food groups came close to or exceeded USDA guidelines, with the exception of cereals, with 5.4 servings per day. The mean score obtained in the HEI was 64.6. Children who complied with all the food guide pyramid recommendations registered a higher dietary variety and a healthier nutritional profile.

Conclusions: Children aged 6–7 y show scant compliance with the macronutrient goals for healthy eating. Micronutrient intake is adequate in general, yet there are small groups of children with risk of deficient intake of vitamins B6 and D. While Spanish children's eating habits are reasonably in line with American food guide pyramid guidelines, consumptions of cereals and fruit should be improved.

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Acknowledgements

This study was partly funded by grants from the International Olive Oil Board (Consejo Oleícola Internacional), Madrid Regional Authority (Comunidad de Madrid), Pedro Barrié de la Maza Foundation and Eugenio Rodríguez Pascual Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Carlos III Institute of Public Health, Ministerio de Sanidad y Consumo, Madrid, Spain

    M A Royo-Bordonada, L Gorgojo & J M Martín-Moreno

  2. Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain

    J M Martín-Moreno, F Rodríguez-Artalejo & M de Oya

  3. Lipids Laboratory, Fundación Jiménez Díaz, Madrid, Spain

    C Garcés, M Benavente & M de Oya

  4. Department of Medicine, Universidad de Cádiz, Cadiz, Spain

    A Mangas

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  1. M A Royo-Bordonada
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on behalf of the investigators of the Four Provinces Study

Contributions

Contributors: Investigators of the Four Provinces Study: AM (Universidad de Cádiz), AG (Universidad Rey Juan Carlos), AS (Fundación Jiménez Díaz), JFP (Hospital de la Cruz Roja, Murcia), MAL (Hospital Ramón y Cajal, Madrid).

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Correspondence to M A Royo-Bordonada.

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Royo-Bordonada, M., Gorgojo, L., Martín-Moreno, J. et al. Spanish children's diet: compliance with nutrient and food intake guidelines. Eur J Clin Nutr 57, 930–939 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ejcn.1601627

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