Association of Infant Feeding Characteristics With Dietary Patterns and Obesity in Korean Childhood

OBJECTIVES: Young children’s feeding characteristics can play an important role in eating habits and health during later childhood. This study was conducted to examine the associations of feeding characteristics with dietary patterns and obesity in children. METHODS: This study utilized data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conducted between 2013 and 2017. In total, 802 toddlers were included, with information on their demographic characteristics, feeding practices and duration, and 24-hour recall obtained from their parents. Feeding characteristics were categorized into feeding type, duration of total breastfeeding, duration of total formula feeding, duration of exclusive breastfeeding, and age when starting formula feeding. Dietary patterns were identified based on factor loadings for the food groups for 3 major factors, with “vegetables & traditional,” “fish & carbohydrates,” and “sweet & fat” patterns. Overweight/obesity was defined as ≥85th percentile in body mass index based on the 2017 Korean National Growth charts for children and adolescents. Multiple regression analysis was conducted to examine associations between feeding characteristics and dietary patterns. The association between dietary patterns and obesity was analyzed using multivariable logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: The early introduction of formula feeding was inversely associated with the “vegetables & traditional” pattern (β=−0.18; 95% confidence interval [CI], −0.34 to −0.02). A higher “vegetables & traditional” intake was associated with a lower risk of obesity (odds ratio, 0.48; 95% CI, 0.24 to 0.95). CONCLUSIONS: Feeding characteristics are associated with dietary patterns in later childhood, and dietary patterns were shown to have a potential protective association against obesity.