Dietary Behavior and Iodine Status of 3-5 Year-old Children

Abstract

According to the survey of iodine deficiency among 3-5 year-old Thai children during 2011-2013 by the Department of Health, the median urinary iodine concentration showed adequate iodine intake and tend to above requirement which can lead to hyperthyroidism and autoimmune thyroid diseases. This study aimed to investigate dietary behavior, iodine contents in foods, iodine status and the association between iodine intake and urinary iodine concentration among 3-5 year-old children. This study was investigated in 3-5 year old children at child development centers from 11 provinces representative for 4 regions of Thailand. Food intakes were assessed using interviewing and food frequency questionnaire. The 2209 parents (female=1,882 and male=327) were interviewed about food consumption of their children. Iodine contents were determined in both food and urine. The results showed that the top ten favorite foods were milk, egg, snacks, beverage, sausages, drinking yogurt, instant noodle, seaweed, cocoa and meat ball. Proportions of the food consumption were 98.1, 91.3, 81.1, 66.5, 58.4, 56.1, 48.5, 40.8, 38.6 and 37.9%, respectively. Iodine contents in top ten favorite foods were 30.0, 91.2, 20.6, 0, 735.9, 10.7, 170.8, 1311.2, 0 and 13.3 mg/100g, respectively. Median urinary iodine concentration of 3-5 year-old children (n=2622) was 241.6 µg/l and median urinary iodine concentrations were 273.4, 242.7, 242.7, and 221.8 mg/l in children from southern, central, northern and north-eastern regions, respectively. This study indicated that Iodine status in 3-5 year-old children is adequate and food sources of iodine were milk, egg, instant noodle and seaweeds. However, these foods did not show any association with urine iodine concentration.