Factors associated with daily sugar-sweetened beverage or fruit juice consumption between meals by toddlers

The purpose of this study was to determine which factors were associated with the daily combined consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages and fruit juice (SSB+FJ) between meals in children at age 30 months. The frequent consumption of SSB+FJ by toddlers is a concern because of the associations between this behavior and health concerns, including dental caries and childhood obesity. Identifying and addressing the factors associated with the daily combined consumption of SSB+FJ between meals could improve the health of toddlers. As part of a longitudinal, multi-site caries risk assessment study, 1,325 infants and their primary caregivers were recruited during well-child visits. The study sites were at Duke University, Indiana University, and the University of Iowa. At ages 12 and 30 months, the child participants underwent dental examinations and their primary caregivers completed questionnaires. This questionnaire included questions about the child’s and caregiver’s demographic information, diet, insurance, and utilization of healthcare services. For this study, the primary question considered was “How often do you give your child sugary drinks such as regular soda, sweet tea, chocolate or strawberry milk or fruit juice between meals?” on the age 30 month questionnaire. Descriptive and bivariate statistics were completed and a multivariable logistic regression model was constructed. The toddler’s daily combined SSB+FJ consumption between meals was associated with caregiver’s daily combined SSB+FJ consumption between meals (OR: 3.46, p<0.001) and the toddler’s daily sugary snack consumption (OR: 4.21, p<0.001). Higher income levels were associated with less frequent combined SSB+FJ consumption by toddlers (OR: 0.79, p<0.001). Toddlers who had sugary snacks daily, who have caregivers who drank combined SSB+FJ daily, and who came from low-income families were the most at risk of drinking combined SSB+FJ daily between meals. These findings can be used to help identify children most at risk of having this behavior and to develop strategies to curtail this habit. This could have implications for decreasing the prevalence of diseases like obesity and dental caries in toddlers.