Meat consumption among 18-month-old children participating in the Childhood Asthma Prevention Study.

Objective: To document meat consumption among 18-month-old children, for use in refining population dietary assessment methods and dietary guidance for young children, Design: A secondary analysis of data collected in 1998-2000 from the 18 months follow up of the Childhood Asthma Prevention Study: an intervention trial of omega-3 oil supplementation and house-dust mite reduction, from birth to five years. Subjects and setting: Pregnant women whose unborn children had an atopic family history were recruited from antenatal clinics of six hospitals in western Sydney. Carers of 429 18-month-old children (80% response) satisfactorily completed three-day weighed food records. Main outcome measures: Mean and median intakes per day and portion sizes of various meats and meat products. Statistical analyses: T-tests for comparing gender differences; Pearson correlation and one-way analysis of variance for relationships between meat and nutrient intake. Results: During the recording period 94% of the children ate meat. McDonald's Chicken McNuggets™ beef mince, and beef sausages were the most frequently consumed meats. Median portion sizes ranged from 20-50 g, and were considerably smaller than `usual' portions specified on food frequency questionnaires in common use. Higher meat diets in this age group were not associated with higher intakes of iron or zinc per MJ. Conclusion: The marginally low intakes of iron and zinc in this age group could be improved by greater use of cuts of red meat appropriately prepared for toddlers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]