Exclusive breastfeeding duration and later intake of vegetables in preschool children

Background/Objectives: To examine whether a relationship exists between exclusive breastfeeding duration and later vegetable consumption in 4-year-old children, independently of factors traditionally associated with children's vegetable intake. Subjects/Methods: A longitudinal study using information collected on children's food consumption patterns and behaviors from a representative sample of children born in 1998 in the province of Quebec, Canada. Face-to-face interviews and self-administered questionnaires were addressed to children's mothers and fathers. From the first group of children (n = 2100) included in the cohort, a subsample of 4-year-old children participated in a nutrition substudy (n = 1549). Results: Children whose mothers held a university degree had odds of 8.7 (95% CI: 4.23-17.93) for consuming two or more servings of vegetables a day at 4 years of age (vs less than one serving per day) in comparison to children of mothers with no high school diploma. Likewise, children who were exclusively breastfed for 3 or more months had odds of 2.6 (95% CI: 1.34-5.02, with 3 to <4 months of exclusive breastfeeding) and 1.9 (95% CI: 1.01-3.61, with 4 or more months of exclusive breastfeeding) for consuming two or more servings of vegetables per day (vs less than one serving per day) in comparison to children who were formula-fed and/or partially breastfed (no exclusive breastfeeding). Conclusions: The findings suggest that three or more months of exclusive breastfeeding is a predictive factor for higher vegetable consumption in preschool children. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition (2011) 65, 196-202; doi:10.1038/ejcn.2010.238; published online 27 October 2010