Diverse weaning foods and diet patterns at multiple time points during infancy period and their association with neurodevelopmental outcomes in 6-year-old children

Background/Objectives: Early-life nutrition may influence neurodevelopment. This study investigated associations between dietary patterns at multiple infancy/early childhood time points and neurodevelopmental outcomes at age 6. Subjects/Methods: An administrative observational cohort was constructed by merging South Korea’s National Health Insurance Service database with the National Health Screening Program for Infants and Children (NHSPIC). Parent-reported diet data were collected from 4–6 months through 30–36 months; dietary pattern clusters were derived using polytomous latent class analysis (poLCA). Neurodevelopment at 66–72 months was assessed using the Korean Developmental Screening Test (K-DST). Results: Among 133,243 eligible children, four dietary clusters were identified. The control cluster (53.4%) was characterized by breast milk feeding, timely weaning (4–6 months), diverse foods, and appropriate meal/milk patterns; Cluster 1 (36.0%) showed selective/picky ingredient intake at 1 year; Cluster 2 (6.6%) had low human milk prevalence, late weaning, diverse ingredients but higher juice intake and fewer meals; Cluster 3 (4.0%) had late weaning, low dietary diversity, and formula feeding. Compared with control, adjusted odds ratios (aORs) for unfavorable total K-DST outcome were 1.209 (95% CI, 1.156–1.266) for Cluster 1, 1.418 (1.312–1.532) for Cluster 2, and 1.741 (1.593–1.903) for Cluster 3, consistent across all domains. Conclusions: Dietary patterns in infancy and early childhood are associated with neurodevelopmental outcomes at age 6.

Ju Hee Kim, Eun Kyo Ha, Gi Chun Lee, Boeun Han, Jeewon Shin, Man Yong Han, Seonkyeong Rhie