Iodine Status of Infants and Toddlers under 2 Years of Age and Its Association with Feeding Behaviors and Maternal Iodine Status in Shanghai: A Quantile Regression Analysis.

It is crucial to provide adequate iodine nutrition to infants and toddlers for proper thyroid function and subsequent brain development. Infants are particularly vulnerable to iodine deficiency during the transition from a milk-based diet (breast milk and/or infant formula) to solid food. This study examines the current iodine levels of children during their first two years of life and investigates the association between these levels and feeding behaviors and the iodine status of their mothers in Shanghai, a city located in eastern China. A hospital-based cohort study was conducted to enroll mother-child pairs, where the child is aged 6-23 months, who visited community health service centers in the 16 districts of Shanghai, China. Data on socio-demographic factors and feeding behavior data were collected from the participants. The urinary iodine concentration (UIC) in both the young children and their mothers were analyzed. A total of 2282 mother-child pairs were included in this analysis. The median (p25-p75) UIC for lactating women, weaning women, and children were 121.3 µg/L (68.1-206.4 µg/L), 123.4 µg/L (58.4-227.2 µg/L), and 152.1 µg/L (75.8-268.3 µg/L), respectively. The UIC in children was found to be higher than that in their mothers (p < 0.001). Children who consumed less than 500 mL per day of formula milk in the last week had lower UICs compared with those who consumed 500 mL per day or more (p = 0.026). Furthermore, the children's UIC was positively correlated with the maternal UIC (rs = 0.285, p < 0.001). Multiple quantile regression analysis revealed a statistically significant positive association between maternal UIC and children's UIC between the 0.1 and 0.9 quantiles (all p < 0.001). We found that the iodine status of infants and toddlers, as well as of mothers, was sufficient. However, a large minority of children and mothers may be at risk of iodine deficiency. Furthermore, no associations between children's UIC and feeding behaviors were observed. Moreover, there was a positive correlation between the UIC of young children and their mothers.

Maternal depressive symptom trajectories and associations with child feeding.

BACKGROUND: Responsive feeding, when caregivers attend to children's signals of hunger and satiation and respond in an emotionally supportive and developmentally appropriate way, is associated with the development of healthy eating behaviors, improved diet quality, and healthy weight status for children. However, gaps in the literature remain on how factors, such as maternal depressive symptoms and child temperament, influence feeding interactions. METHODS: This longitudinal secondary data analysis explored the association between maternal depressive symptom trajectory and child temperament with maternal feeding practices in women with obesity who participated in a prenatal lifestyle intervention trial. Mothers self-reported depressive symptoms at baseline, 35 weeks gestation, and 6, 12, and 18 months postpartum. At 18- and 24-months postpartum, mothers completed self-reported assessments of feeding practices and child temperament and completed in-home video-recorded meals with their child, coded using the Responsiveness to Child Feeding Cues Scale. We used group-based trajectory modeling to identify distinct trajectories of depressive symptoms and generalized regressions to assess the association between symptom trajectory group and feeding. We also explored interactions between depressive symptoms and child temperament. RESULTS: Three distinct trajectories of depressive symptoms were identified: No-Minimal and Decreasing, Mild-Moderate and Stable, and Moderate-Severe and Stable. At 18-months, when compared to the No-Minimal and Decreasing group, membership in the Moderate-Severe and Stable group was associated with higher observed responsiveness to child satiation cues ([Formula: see text] =2.3, 95%CI = 0.2, 4.4) and lower self-reported pressure to eat ([Formula: see text]=-0.4, 95%CI= -0.7, 0.0). When compared to the No-Minimal and Decreasing group, membership in the Mild-Moderate and Stable group was associated with higher self-reported restriction ([Formula: see text] =0.4, 95%CI = 0.0,0.7). The associations between trajectory group membership and feeding practices did not reach statistical significance at 24 months. Associations between depressive symptoms and restriction were moderated by child effortful control at 18 months [Formula: see text]) and surgency at 24 months [Formula: see text]). CONCLUSION: A Moderate-Severe and Stable depressive symptom trajectory was associated with more responsive feeding practices and a Mild-Moderate and Stable trajectory was associated with higher restrictive feeding. Preliminary evidence suggests that depressive symptoms impact mothers' ability to match their use of restriction to the temperamental needs of their child.

Exploring dietary patterns and their association with environmental sustainability and body mass index in children and adolescents: Insights from the National Food, Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey 2015-2016.

OBJECTIVE: To adapt four dietary patterns for children and adolescents, and study their associations with sustainability (greenhouse-gas emissions-GHGE and land use-LU), and health (body mass index-BMI) indicators. RESEARCH METHODS & PROCEDURES: Dietary intake of children (3-9y) and adolescents (10-17y) from the National Food, Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey 2015-2016, Portugal (n = 1153) was assessed through two non-consecutive interviews: one-day food diaries (children), and 24-h recalls (adolescents), using an automated multiple-pass method, including a picture book for portion sizes estimation. Adherence to the Eat-Lancet and World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations, Mediterranean and Atlantic diets were evaluated using adapted versions for pediatrics of the World Index for Sustainability and Health (WISH), Diet Quality Index (DQI), Mediterranean Diet Score (MDS) and Southern-European Atlantic Diet (SEAD), respectively. Diet-related GHGE and LU were estimated using the SHARP-Indicators database. BMI (measured) z-scores were classified according to WHO criteria. A standardized weighted health-sustainability composite index was created (BMI + 0.5*GHGE+0.5*LU). Adjusted linear regression models were computed. RESULTS: WISH, DQI, MDS, and SEAD had weighted mean scores (range) of 50 (0-130), 24 (9-36), 20 (8-32), and 17 (8-32), respectively. All dietary patterns were associated with lower environmental impact, particularly in children, but not with BMI. Only MDS explained both health and sustainability indicators in childhood (composite index: sd.ß = -0·223,95%CI:-0·347,-0·072,R2 = 25.1 %), and adolescence (composite index: sd.ß = -0·159,95%CI:-0·315,-0·003,R2 = 31.3 %). CONCLUSION: The Mediterranean diet was the most related to (higher) environmental sustainability and (lower) BMI. However, in children (not adolescents), the WISH, DQI, and SEAD showed then same associations.

Association between early childhood caries and parental education and the link to the sustainable development goal 4: a scoping review.

BACKGROUND: The goal of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4 is to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. The aim of this scoping review was to map the current evidence on the association between the prevalence of early childhood caries (ECC) and parental education; and to identify possible pathways by which parental education may protect against ECC. METHODS: The two questions that guided this review were: what is the existing evidence on the association between maternal and paternal education and ECC; and what are the pathways by which parental education protects against ECC? The initial search was conducted in January 2023 in PubMed, Web of Science and Scopus. Articles published in English between January 2000 and October 2022 that reported on the association between parental education and ECC were screened, and the extracted data were compiled, summarized, and synthesized. Review papers and non-primary quantitative research papers were excluded from the full-text review. Open coding was applied to develop a conceptual framework. RESULTS: In total, 49 studies were included: 42 cross-sectional, 3 case-control and 4 cohort studies. The majority (91.8%) reported on the associations between ECC and maternal (n = 33), paternal (n = 3), and parental (n = 9) level of education, and 13 (26.7%) reported on the association between parental education and the severity of ECC. Mothers with more than primary school education (n = 3), post-secondary/college/tertiary education (n = 23), and more than 4-12 years of education (n = 12) had children with lower risk for ECC. Two studies reporting on parental education found an association between maternal but not paternal education and ECC. The review suggests that achieving the SDG 4.1 may reduce the risk of ECC. Possible pathways by which maternal education protects from ECC were feeding practices, oral hygiene practices, and the use of dental services. CONCLUSION: The study findings suggests that higher maternal educational level may reduce the risk for the consumption of cariogenic diet, poor oral hygiene practices and poor use of dental services for caries prevention. However, the association between paternal education and ECC was not consistently observed, with significant associations less frequently reported compared to maternal education. Future studies are needed to define the magnitude and modifiers of the impact of maternal education on the risk for ECC.

Psychometric Evaluation of the Food Life Questionnaire-Short Form among Brazilian Adult Women.

Measures of beliefs and attitudes toward food have generally been limited to the measurement of more pathological eating attitudes (e.g., disordered eating). The Food Life Questionnaire (FLQ) and its short form (FLQ-SF) were developed to examine attitudes toward a broader range of foods; however, the factor structure of the FLQ-SF was not confirmed in any study with young women. In the present study, we performed a psychometric evaluation of the Brazilian Portuguese translation of the FLQ-SF in a sample of 604 women. We evaluated the factor structure using a two-step, split-sample exploratory and confirmatory factor analytic approach. Results supported a four-factor structure (i.e., weight concern, diet-health orientation, belief in a diet-health linkage, and food and pleasure) with 18 items (χ2/df = 2.09; CFI = 0.95; TLI = 0.94; RMSEA = 0.05 (90% CI = 0.04; 0.06; p > 0.05); and SRMR = 0.08). Additionally, we found good internal consistency for all FLQ-SF subscales (McDonald's ω = 0.79-0.89) and convergent validity with measures of feelings, beliefs, and behaviors involved in food attitudes. Collectively, these results support the use of the FLQ-SF in Brazilian women and provide a foundation to expand the literature on beliefs and attitudes toward food in this population.

Feeding under fire: Relations between parental stress hormones and controlling feeding behaviors.

Under stress, parents tend to use more controlling feeding behaviors toward their children (Berge et al., 2017; Doan et al., 2022; Loth et al., 2016). However, the majority of prior work focuses on subjective reports of stress, and there is a dearth of research examining parental physiological stress and its impact on feeding behaviors. In the current study, we examined how parental physiological stress reactivity would influence their feeding behaviors under mild stress in a lab-based setting. Parents (n = 83, 50 % females) and their children (59% female, Mage = 42 months, SD = 4.48) participated. Stress was induced using the Trier Social Stress Test in the laboratory (Kirshbaum et al., 1993). Salivary samples were collected at 4 time points during the visit to index stress reactivity and later assayed for cortisol and DHEA. Parent-child interactions during the anticipatory period of the stress test were observationally coded for parent use of controlling feeding behaviors. To examine whether parent stress physiology predicts their feeding behaviors, we ran a Poisson regression using income, parent ethnicity, parent sex (mom/dad), time of day, and DHEA/cortisol ratio as predictors of controlling feeding behavior. Latinx parents used less controlling feeding behaviors, b = -0.323, p = 0.041 than non-Latinx parents. Parents with a higher DHEA/Cortisol ratio were less likely to use controlling feeding behaviors, b = -0.231, p = 0.008. To our knowledge, this is the first study to show that for both mothers and fathers, DHEA relative to cortisol has a protective role in controlling feeding practices, and lends support to the role of acute stress reactivity in predicting behavioral outcomes.

A comparative analysis of oropharyngeal functions in preterm and term children with cerebral palsy.

This study aims to compare term and preterm children with Cerebral Palsy (CP) in terms of their oropharyngeal functions. A total of 50 children with CP participated in the study, and were divided into two groups according to their birth history including preterm group (gestational age below 37 weeks; 60 % female; mean age = 6.86 ± 4.35 years) and term group (gestational age between 37 and 41 weeks; 60 % female; mean age = 6.48 ± 4.86 years). Chewing and swallowing functions were evaluated in terms of oropharyngeal functions. Chewing evaluation was performed by using the Karaduman Chewing Performance Scale (KCPS) and the Turkish version of the Mastication Observation and Evaluation Instrument (T-MOE). The pediatric version of the Eating Assessment Tool (PEDI-EAT-10) was used to evaluate swallowing performance of children. In addition, the Behavioral Pediatric Feeding Assessment Scale (BPFAS) was used to assess feeding behaviors of children. There were significant differences between groups in terms of KCPS (p = 0.03), T-MOE (p = 0.01), and PEDI-EAT-10 scores (p = 0.04). There was a significant difference between groups in terms of the parental frequency score from the BPFAS (p = 0.04). Oropharyngeal functions of preterm children with CP were more adversely affected than term children with CP. Clinicians working with children with CP should be aware of the risks of preterm birth on oropharyngeal functions, and take precautions for oropharyngeal dysfunction in the early period in preterm children with CP.

Acceptance of bite presentations and feeding behaviors of 8 to 12-month-old infants: A reflection of typical feeding development.

PURPOSE: The lack of age-appropriate expectations for feeding acceptance patterns in early childhood is a barrier to early and accurate identification of pediatric feeding disorder (PFD). The objective of the study was to describe the process by which typically developing children 8-12 months of age accept or refuse bite presentations and their corresponding feeding behaviors, aiming to establish age-appropriate normative data for feeding acceptance. METHOD: Using cross-sectional methodology, we studied the proportion of bite presentations accepted, the type of feeding behaviors-passive, disruptive, expulsion, feeding concerns- observed at presentation and acceptance or refusal, and the duration between presentation to acceptance or refusal in 63 healthy infants between 8 and 12 months of age. Descriptive statistics and a one-way ANOVA were conducted to compare the effect of age and texture. RESULTS: Findings reveal high levels of bite acceptance of 80 % or > for children across ages, but with lower texture-specific differences. Both passive and disruptive behaviors were present even during acceptance of bites without any expulsion. Feeding concerns showed developmental trends with rapid reduction by 12 months suggesting improvement in oral feeding skills. The duration of acceptance and refusals revealed clear patterns by age and texture with an average of 3 s for acceptance but <1 s for refusal. CONCLUSIONS: This study describes bite acceptance patterns in a cohort of typically developing infants between 8 and 12 months of age by examining the acceptance of bites, frequency and type of feeding behaviors, and duration differences when children accept versus refuse a bite. Findings may be applied in the future to provide more sensitive detection of problematic feeding patterns to aid in the detection of pediatric feeding disorder.

The temporal stability of maternal parenting style and child feeding practices: A six-wave longitudinal study.

Although parenting styles and child feeding practices are conceptualized as distal, static predictors of child eating and weight outcomes, few studies have examined the temporal stability (i.e., change over time) of these parenting measures. Also, parental characteristics, such as mental health or socio-demographics, may make it more or less difficult to sustain consistent parenting behavior. This study examined the temporal stability of parenting styles and child feeding practices and the association between temporal stability indices with maternal sociodemographic and mental health characteristics. The analytic sample included 161 ethnically diverse mothers enrolled in a six-wave bi-annual longitudinal study. During each wave, mothers reported on their parenting styles and child feeding practices using validated self-report questionnaires. Temporal stability indices for parenting styles were moderate for authoritative (ICC = 0.57) and authoritarian (ICC = 0.70) styles, yet high for permissive (ICC = 0.78) styles. Temporal stability scores for child feeding practices were low for discipline (ICC = 0.33), limit setting (ICC = 0.33), monitoring (ICC = 0.36), and pressure to eat (ICC = 0.34); however, restriction (ICC = 0.53) and role modeling of healthy eating were moderate (ICC = 0.73). Greater income and education status were positively associated with stability in authoritative, authoritarian, and permissive parenting styles, as well as with limit setting, monitoring, role modeling of healthy eating, and pressure to eat feeding practices. Higher anxiety and depressive symptoms and lower self-esteem were negatively associated with permissive parenting styles and role modeling of healthy eating. Findings show that maternal parenting styles and child feeding practices fluctuate over time, and sociodemographic and mental health characteristics are related to stability of some of these parenting styles and behaviors.

Appetitive traits from childhood to adolescence: Analysis of their stability, derivation of trajectory profiles, and associated characteristics.

This study aimed to assess the potential stability of appetitive traits from childhood to early adolescence, identify groups of individuals with distinct trajectories for these traits, and explore their association with other child and family characteristics. Participants were 5040 children from the Generation XXI cohort. Appetitive traits were assessed with the Children's Eating Behaviour Questionnaire (CEBQ) at ages seven, 10, and 13 (eight subscales). Mixed-effect models estimated individual trajectories of appetitive traits and Gaussian mixture models identified groups following different trajectories (appetitive trait trajectory profiles). Appetitive traits showed moderate-to-high stability across the three ages (intra-class correlation coefficients:0.66-0.83); most of the variance observed across time were due to persistent individual differences rather than age-related changes. Six appetitive trait trajectory profiles were identified: 'Moderate appetite' (scores close to the average) (29% of children), 'Small to moderate appetite' (lowest food approach and emotional eating) (26%), 'Increasing appetite' (increasing food approach) (15%), 'Avid appetite' (highest food approach and lowest food avoidance) (12%), 'Smallest appetite' (highest food avoidance and low food approach) (10%), and 'Small appetite but increasing' (decreasing high food avoidance and Desire to Drink) (8%). In multinomial logistic regression, these profiles were associated with different child and family characteristics. Compared to children with a 'Moderate appetite' profile, those with higher BMI, who desired a thinner body, whose mothers were younger, had lower education, higher pre-pregnancy BMI (OR = 1.07; 95%CI:1.04,1.09), smoked during pregnancy (OR = 1.51; 95%CI:1.21,1.90), and used more restrictive feeding practices (OR = 1.79; 95%CI:1.57,2.03) had increased odds of belonging to the 'Avid Appetite'. In conclusion, distinct appetitive trait trajectory profiles emerged, differentiating individuals with avid and small appetites. These findings have implications for identifying children at higher risk for obesogenic profiles.

Validation of the Scale on Parental Feeding Behaviors (ECOPAL) for Caregivers of Mexican Children.

Parental feeding practices can be crucial to preventing childhood obesity. This study aimed to validate a self-applicable instrument for evaluating the diverse parental feeding behaviors of Mexican caregivers based on the theoretical constructs of coercive control, structure, and autonomy support. The scale's content validity achieved significant values when assessed by expert judges, with moderate intensity in congruence (Kendall's W = 0.462; p = 0.000) and clarity (Kendall's W = 0.369; p = 0.001). The participants were 1185 Mexican adults (32.7 ± 7.6 years of age, 97% women, and 90% mothers) responsible for the main meal of at least one child (4.8 ± 3 years old). The data were subdivided randomly for an exploratory factor analysis (n = 581) and a confirmatory factorial analysis (n = 604). The first analysis grouped the items into 11 factors, with an accumulated variance of 63.9%. In the confirmatory analysis, a 10-factor model showed a better fit (CMIN = 1531.5, p < 0.001, CMIN/df = 2.20, RSEA = 0.045, CFI = 0.92, TLI, 0.91, and NFI = 0.87). The factors in this model were (1) the disposition of non-recommended foods, (2) nutritional education, (3) pressure to eat, (4) praise for healthy eating, (5) monitoring of consumption, (6) structured offer of fruits and vegetables, (7) consumption conditioning, (8) overt restriction, (9) guided choices, and (10) covert restriction. The Cronbach's alpha value was 0.816. Therefore, this scale presents good psychometric properties with which to evaluate the frequency of child caregivers' feeding behaviors in the context of ten different feeding practices in Mexico's urban areas and contributes to the knowledge of current practices in the Mexican population. It also evaluates changes resulting from future interventions that promote eating practices that favor the formation of healthy eating habits.

Study on the Adaptive Regulation of Light on the Stress Response of Mandarin Fish (Siniperca chuatsi) with Re-Feeding after Starvation.

Light influences the stress response to environmental stimuli and feeding behaviors of Siniperca chuatsi and, thus, is an important regulator of normal growth and development. In this study, we first explored the important role of light on the digestive and stress capacity of S. chuatsi by studying the changes in physiological and biochemical indicators of S. chuatsi, taking the re-feeding after starvation as the constant environmental stimulus and the light intensity as the adjustable environmental stimulus. The activity of protease and lipase was generally higher in the stomach tissues than in the intestinal tissues, especially lipase, which was higher in stomach tissues under all light conditions, and the protease and lipase activity peaked in the stomach tissues of S. chuatsi at a light intensity of 18.44 ± 3.00 lx and in intestinal tissues at 11.15 ± 2.01 lx, respectively, indicating that greater light intensity increased the digestive capacity of stomach tissues, whereas lower light intensity facilitated the digestive capacity of intestinal tissues. The tissues of the gill, stomach, and intestine had relatively high activity of stress-related enzymes, whereas the tissues of the brain, kidney, liver, and plasma samples had relatively low activity of enzymes. Collectively, the results show that light intensity at 11.15 ± 2.01 lx promoted digestive capacity in the intestine and enhanced the anti-stress ability of S. chuatsi in response to stress induced by re-feeding after starvation. These findings should prove useful for artificial breeding of S. chuatsi.

Factors associated with feeding behaviors among mothers of obese infants: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Infant obesity is a risk factor for diseases in childhood and even in adulthood. Maternal feeding behaviors are strongly associated with infant obesity, hence factors relevant to mother's perception, socioeconomic status, and social support that influence the feeding behaviors need to be explored. Therefore, this study aimed to examine associated factors of feeding behaviors among mothers with obese infants. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at the pediatric wards of a tertiary hospital in Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, China. Participants (n=134) were mothers of infant with obesity aged 6-12 months. Data were collected by structured questionnaires. Maternal feeding characteristics and the relationship between mothers' age, monthly personal income, parental self-efficacy, social support, benefits of maternal feeding behaviors, barriers to maternal feeding behaviors and feeding behaviors were examined. The Data was analyzed by descriptive statistics and multiple regression analysis. Results: Most of the infants (84.3%) was in the 98th-100th percentile. Nearly half of the mothers were 30-39 years old and unemployed (46.3%). One-third (61.40%) were multiparous mothers and 73.1% cared for their infants for more than 6 hours per day. Monthly personal income, parenting self-efficacy and social support together explained 28% of variance on feeding behaviors (P<0.05). Parenting self-efficacy (ß=0.309, P<0.05) and social support (ß=0.224, P<0.05) had significantly positive influence on feeding behaviors. Maternal personal income (ß=-0.196, P<0.05) had a significantly negative influence on feeding behaviors among mothers having infants with obesity. Conclusions: Nursing interventions should be focused on enhancing parenting self-efficacy and promoting social support for the feeding behaviors of mothers.

Dual Behavior Regulation: Tether-Free Deep-Brain Stimulation by Photothermal and Upconversion Hybrid Nanoparticles.

Optogenetics has been plagued by invasive brain implants and thermal effects during photo-modulation. Here, two upconversion hybrid nanoparticles modified with photothermal agents, named PT-UCNP-B/G, which can modulate neuronal activities via photostimulation and thermo-stimulation under near-infrared laser irradiation at 980 nm and 808 nm, respectively, are demonstrated. PT-UCNP-B/G emits visible light (410-500 nm or 500-570 nm) through the upconversion process at 980 nm, while they exhibit efficient photothermal effect at 808 nm with no visible emission and tissue damage. Intriguingly, PT-UCNP-B significantly activates extracellular sodium currents in neuro2a cells expressing light-gated channelrhodopsin-2 (ChR2) ion channels under 980-nm irradiation, and inhibits potassium currents in human embryonic kidney 293 cells expressing the voltage-gated potassium channels (KCNQ1) under 808-nm irradiation in vitro. Furthermore, deep-brain bidirectional modulation of feeding behavior is achieved under tether-free 980 or 808-nm illumination (0.8 W cm-2 ) in mice stereotactically injected with PT-UCNP-B in the ChR2-expressing lateral hypothalamus region. Thus, PT-UCNP-B/G creates new possibility of utilizing both light and heat to modulate neural activities and provides a viable strategy to overcome the limits of optogenetics.

Associations of parent feeding behaviors and early life food exposures with early childhood appetitive traits in an observational cohort study.

PURPOSE: Child appetitive traits, eating styles that reflect responsiveness to external influences and internal hunger and satiety signals, are associated with eating behaviors and susceptibility to excess weight gain. However, relatively little is known about early life influences on child appetitive traits. This study investigated relations of early life maternal feeding behaviors and food exposures with appetitive traits at age 3.5 years. METHODS: Participants of the Pregnancy Eating Attributes Study (PEAS) and follow-up study were enrolled in early pregnancy and followed prospectively. This analysis included data collected from baseline through child aged 3.5-years (n = 160). Child appetitive traits at age 3.5 years were measured using the Child Eating Behavior Questionnaire. Age at introduction to fruit, vegetables, discretionary sweets, and discretionary savory foods was assessed, along with intake frequency at infant ages 6, 9, and 12 months, and 2 years. Maternal feeding to soothe was assessed at child aged 3, 6, and 12 months. Maternal permissive feeding was assessed at child aged 2 years. Multiple linear regressions estimated relations of maternal feeding behaviors and infant food exposures with child appetitive traits at age 3.5 years, controlling for sociodemographics and breastfeeding duration. RESULTS: Maternal feeding to soothe at 6 (r = 0.39, p < 0.001) and 12 months (r = 0.39, p < 0.001) was positively associated with permissive feeding at 2 years. Maternal feeding to soothe at 12 months and permissive feeding at 2 years were associated with greater child emotional overeating, emotional undereating, and desire to drink. Older age at introduction to fruit (ß = 0.20±0.08, p = 0.01) and younger age at introduction to discretionary sweet foods (ß = -0.07±0.04, p = 0.06) were associated with greater emotional overeating. Older age at introduction to vegetables (ß = 0.22±0.11, p = 0.04) and less frequent feeding of fruit (ß = -0.20±0.08, p = 0.01) were associated with greater food fussiness. CONCLUSIONS: Associations of emotional eating with parent feeding behaviors and early life food exposures suggest the potential for interventions targeting early life feeding to have long-term impact on child appetitive traits and diet quality.

Factores de riesgo asociados al sobrepeso y obesidad en niños y adolescentes durante la pandemia por COVID-19 en Chile

La pandemia COVID-19 ha provocado cambios en los estilos de vida, principalmente en los hábitos y conductas alimentarias saludables. Por lo tanto, nuestro objetivo fue evaluar la asociación de los hábitos alimentarios, conductas alimentarias familiares, estilos de vida y percepción del estado nutricional con el riesgo de sobrepeso y obesidad en niños y adolescentes durante la pandemia por COVID-19. Se realizó un estudio transversal, con una muestra n= 661 niños y adolescentes, mediante un cuestionario de autoinforme en línea realizado durante el confinamiento por COVID-19. Se observó 37,5% de malnutrición por exceso. Los estilos de vida como dormir las horas recomendadas según edad y tener conductas familiares saludables disminuyó en 49,0% (OR= 0,510, p= <0,001) y 10,8% (OR= 0,892, p= 0,01) respectivamente, el riesgo de malnutrición por exceso. La percepción de los padres sobre un aumento de peso durante la pandemia, la distorsión del estado nutricional y el riesgo a la salud del estado nutricional de sus hijos aumentó 4.8 (OR= 4,846, p= <0,001), 8,5 (OR= 8,580, p= <0,001) y 3,8 (OR= 3,826, p= 0,001) veces respectivamente, el riesgo de malnutrición por exceso en niños y adolescentes. En conclusión, el confinamiento por COVID-19 y el cierre de las escuelas podrían haber afectado los estilos de vida. Además, es fundamental el rol de los padres en la percepción del estado nutricional y en las conductas alimentarias familiares, ya que podrían ser un factor predictor del riesgo de sobrepeso y obesidad. Estos hallazgos ameritan investigaciones futuras para diseñar planes y programas para evitar las consecuencias relacionadas al sobrepeso y obesidad.

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused changes in people's lifestyles, mainly in healthy eating habits and behaviors. Therefore, our objective was to evaluate the association of eating habits, family eating behaviors, lifestyles, and perception of nutritional status with the risk of overnutrition in children and adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic. A cross-sectional study was conducted on a sample of 661 Chilean children and adolescents. The study tool was an online self-report questionnaire taken during the COVID-19 lockdown. We observed overnutrition in 37.5%. Habits such as sleeping the recommended number of hours by age group and having healthy family behaviors decreased the risk of overnutrition by 49.0% (OR= 0.510, p= <0.001) and 10.8% (OR= 0.892, p= 0.01), respectively. Parents' perception of weight gain during the pandemic, the distortion of nutritional status and the health risk of their children's nutritional status increased 4.8 (OR= 4.846, p= <0.001), 8.5 (OR= 8.580, p= <0.001) and 3.8 (OR= 3.826, p= <0.001) times, respectively, the risk of overnutrition in children and adolescents. In conclusion, the COVID-19 lockdown and school closures may have affected lifestyles. In addition, the role of parents in the perception of nutritional status and family eating behaviors is fundamental since they could be a predictor of the risk of overnutrition. These findings propose further research to design plans and programs to avoid the consequences related to overweight and obesity.

Assessment of Feeding Behaviors and Parents' Frustrations of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder in Lebanon: A Case-Control Study.

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) exhibit restrictive and repetitive behaviors that affect their eating habits. The purpose of this study is to identify the behavioral feeding problems and eating habits among ASD children compared to typically developed (TD) children age/gender-matched controls, along with their parents'/caregivers' strategies for dealing with them. It included 43 ASD children and 43 TD children aged two to eleven years. The analysis was performed based on two valid questionnaires: the Behavior Pediatrics Feeding Assessment Scale (BPFA) and "My Child Eating Habits" (MCEH). The BPFA and MCEH scores conceded three manifestations that fall into food selectivity and problematic mealtime behavior in both groups of children. Compared to TD children, children with ASD exhibited higher BPFA scores, which indicated food-related behavioral and skill-based problems (p = 0.004). Children with ASD were less likely to consume fruits, vegetables, and milk than TD children, which may lead to nutritional deficiencies (p = 0.003, p = 0.003, and p = 0.010, respectively). Parents of ASD children were concerned about their behavioral problems and expressed their intention of an early intervention. These findings highlight the importance of nutritional clinical routines that incorporate the evaluation of the nutritional status and feeding behaviors of ASD children.

Physiological Role of Orexinergic System for Health.

Orexins, or hypocretins, are excitatory neuropeptides involved in the regulation of feeding behavior and the sleep and wakefulness states. Since their discovery, several lines of evidence have highlighted that orexin neurons regulate a great range of physiological functions, giving it the definition of a multitasking system. In the present review, we firstly describe the mechanisms underlining the orexin system and their interactions with the central nervous system (CNS). Then, the system's involvement in goal-directed behaviors, sleep/wakefulness state regulation, feeding behavior and energy homeostasis, reward system, and aging and neurodegenerative diseases are described. Advanced evidence suggests that the orexin system is crucial for regulating many physiological functions and could represent a promising target for therapeutical approaches to obesity, drug addiction, and emotional stress.

Lifestyle Interventions for Non-Obese Patients Both with, and at Risk, of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease.

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease occurring in non-obese subjects (the so-called non-obese NAFLD) is a highly prevalent but neglected liver condition, which is closely associated with metabolic disorders and suboptimal lifestyles. Landmark studies have shown that lifestyle interventions are potentially beneficial in decreasing the risk of developing non-obese NAFLD and in ameliorating NAFLD in non-obese individuals with pre-existing NAFLD. Lifestyle interventions usually refer to changes in eating habits and physical activity, both of which have a powerful effect on non-obese NAFLD and on risk factors for non-obese NAFLD. However, to date, patients and health-care professionals have a poor awareness and understanding of non-obese NAFLD and the beneficial effects of lifestyle interventions in this patient population. The aim of this narrative review is to briefly discuss the evidence for the effects of lifestyle changes and what changes are needed amongst medical personnel and other stakeholders in order to raise awareness of non-obese NAFLD.

Recognition of Cattle's Feeding Behaviors Using Noseband Pressure Sensor With Machine Learning.

Automatic monitoring of feeding behavior especially rumination and eating in cattle is important to keep track of animal health and growth condition and disease warnings. The noseband pressure sensor is not only able to accurately sense the pressure change of the cattle's jaw movements, which can directly reflect the cattle's chewing behavior, but also has strong resistance to interference. However, it is difficult to keep the same initial pressure while wearing the pressure sensor, and this will pose a challenge to process the feeding behavior data. This article proposed a machine learning approach aiming at eliminating the influence of initial pressure on the identification of rumination and eating behaviors. The method mainly used the local slope to obtain the local data variation and combined Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) to extract the frequency-domain features. Extreme Gradient Boosting Algorithm (XGB) was performed to classify the features of rumination and eating behaviors. Experimental results showed that the local slope in combination with frequency-domain features achieved an F1 score of 0.96, and recognition accuracy of 0.966 in both rumination and eating behaviors. Combined with the commonly used data processing algorithms and time-domain feature extraction method, the proposed approach improved the behavior recognition accuracy. This work will contribute to the standardized application and promotion of the noseband pressure sensors.