Patterns of early dietary exposures have implications for maternal and child weight outcomes

ObjectiveThis article examines relations between patterns of dietary exposures at 9 months and infant and maternal weight status at 1 year postpartum. MethodsParticipants were part of the Infant Feeding Practices Study II and included 1807 mothers participating through the first year postpartum. All data were self-reported monthly by mothers. Latent class analysis was conducted to identify patterns of infant dietary exposures at 9 months. Factors that predicted dietary pattern class membership were examined including infant sleep and parity. Dietary pattern membership was used to predict child and maternal weight outcomes at 1 year postpartum. ResultsFive patterns of dietary exposures were identified, characterized by differences in milk-feeding and solid foods at 9 months: Breastfed Fruits and Vegetables, Breastfed Low Variety, Formula-Fed Fruits and Vegetables, Formula-Fed Low Variety, and Mixed High Energy Density. Infants in the Mixed High Energy Density dietary pattern were more likely to be overweight at 1 year. ConclusionsDietary classes that capture different combinations of several aspects of infant feeding may be more useful than single dietary predictors, for example, breastfeeding, formula-feeding, or early introduction to solids, to describe differences in infants' early dietary experience and risk for overweight.