Nutrient intakes and dietary patterns of young children by dietary fat intakes

Objective: To determine whether low fat intake is associated with increased risk of nutritional inadequacy in children 2 to 8 years old and to identify eating patterns associated with differences in fat intake. Study design: Using 2 days of recall from the Continuing Survey of Food Intake by Individuals (CSFII), 1994 to 1996, we classified 2802 children into quartiles of energy intake from fat (<29%, 29% to 31.9% [defined as moderate fat], 32% to 34.9%, and greater than or equal to 35%) and compared nutrient intakes, the proportion of children at risk for inadequate intakes, Food Pyramid servings, and fat content per serving across quartiles. Results: here children in quartile 2 were at risk for inadequate intakes of vitamin E, calcium, and zinc than children in higher quartiles (P < .0001); more children in quartiles 3 and 4 were at risk for inadequate intakes of vitamins A and C and folate (P < .001). Fruit intake decreased across quartiles (P < .0001); whereas vegetable, meat, and fat-based condiment intakes increased (P < .0001). Fat per serving of grain, vegetables, dairy, and meat increased across quartiles (P < .0001). Conclusions: Moderate-fat diets were not consistently associated with an increased proportion of children at risk for nutritional inadequacy, and higher-fat diets were not consistently protective against inadequacy. Dietary fat-could be reduced by judicious selection of lower-fat foods without compromising nutritional adequacy.