DIETARY DIVERSITY AND ASSOCIATED FACTORS AMONG CHILDREN IN CHILD DEVELOPMENT CENTERS, MUENG DISTRICT, UDONTHANI PROVINCE

Abstract

Dietary Diversity (DD) is a valid and reliable indicator of dietary adequacy among children.  This study aimed to assess the dietary diversity and analyze associated factors among children in Child Development Center, Mueng district, Udonthani Province. A cross-sectional study involving 300 children aged 2-5 years was conducted. A 24 h dietary recall by caregivers of their children’s food consumption was used to calculate DD based on 9-foods groups. A structural questionnaire, administered through face-to-face interview, was employed to gather data including characteristics of both the children and their families, their knowledge of child nutrition, and child-rearing practices. Factors associated with DD were determined by analyzing multiple logistic regression. The study revealed that the mean age of the children was 44.07±8.55 months. The prevalence of high DD (consuming >5 out of 9 food groups) of the children was 49%, with mean (sd) of 5.62 (0.84) food groups consumed. Only 11% and 35.3% of the children consumed dark green leafy vegetables and other high vitamin A rich vegetables and fruits. High iron food was consumed by 18.3% of the children. The study identified several factors that were statistically significantly associated with a high diversified diet of the children (>5 food groups), including family food expenditure >200 baht/day (OR_agj: 3.62, 95% CI: 1.39-9.43, p =0.008), caregivers working as shop keeper or owning a business (comparison with farmers or unemployed caregivers) (OR_adj: 2.31, 95% CI: 1.24-4.30, p = 0.008), children raised by their parents (OR_adj: 1.78, 95% CI: 1.07-2.96, p = 0.024) and families cooking dinner at home OR_ad: 1.74, 95% CI: 1.01-3.00, p = 0.046). In conclusion, only half of the children aged 2-5 years consumed a diverse diet with low consumption of micronutrient-rich food groups.  Hence, parents and caregivers both at home and in child development centers, should emphasize providing a diverse diet, particularly nutrient-rich foods, to their children.  Furthermore, families with grandparents as caregivers or parents as farmers should receive more attention in promoting a diversified diet, and cooking at home should be encouraged to ensure that children have a diversified and nutrient-rich diet.Key words: Dietary diversity, young children, child development center