Is food portion size a risk factor of childhood overweight?

Background/Objectives: Food portion sizes have been increasing in industrialized countries and this is thought to be one of the risk factors of overweight. France is also facing the development of adiposity, particularly in its child population, where overweight rates are rising faster than in adults. Given this background, the objectives of the present study were, for each food category, to describe dietary intake in French children aged 3-11 years, and to assess the relationship between childhood overweight and portion size, adjusting for dietary energy density, physical activity and sedentary behaviour. Subjects/Methods: A representative sample of 748 French children aged 3-11 years was taken from the 1998-1999 crosssectional French INCA1 (Enquete Individuelle et Nationale sur les Consommations Alimentaires) food consumption survey. Dietary intake was assessed using a 7-day food record. Portion sizes were estimated for 23 food categories. Weight and height, physical activity and sedentary behaviour were reported by parents or children in questionnaires. Results: In multivariate logistic regression adjusted models, overweight in children aged 3-6 years was positively correlated to portion sizes of croissant-like pastries and other sweetened pastries. Conversely, portion sizes of liquid dairy products were inversely associated with overweight in children aged 7-11 years. Conclusions: At very young ages, the increase in overweight may be driven in part by a shift in eating patterns towards larger portion size of energy-dense and nutrient-poor foods.