Nutrient intake from complementary foods of Asian New Zealand infants : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Nutrition and Dietetics, Massey University, Albany, New Zealand

Abstract

Background: The complementary feeding period (6-23 months of age) is when solid foods are introduced alongside breast milk or infant formula. The introduction of complementary foods is important to meet changing nutritional requirements. The Asian population in New Zealand (NZ) is rising, with the most relevant research on Asian infants in NZ focusing on the adherence to food and nutrition guidelines. There has been no research specifically on the energy and nutrient intakes from complementary foods of Asian infants in NZ. Objectives: To describe Asian NZ infants’ energy, carbohydrate, protein, fat, vitamin A, vitamin B12, vitamin C, iron, and zinc intake from complementary foods, and to compare the intake of energy, macronutrients, and micronutrients from complementary foods in Asian NZ infants to non-Asian infants in NZ. Methods: This study reports a secondary analysis of the First Foods New Zealand cross sectional study of infants (aged 7.0-9.9 months) in Dunedin and Auckland. 24-hour recall data were analysed using Foodworks 10 software with the NZ food composition database FOODfiles, and additional data for commercial complementary foods. The multiple source method was used to estimate usual dietary intake. Ethnicity was collected from the main questionnaire of the study, and answered by the infant’s parent/caregiver. Within the Asian NZ group, three Asian subgroups were identified – South East Asian, East Asian, and South Asian. The non-Asian group included all remaining participants of non-Asian ethnicities. Intakes were compared to the nutrient reference values for the 7-12 month age group. Results: Asian NZ infants (n=99) had a mean energy intake from complementary foods of 1253kJ, compared with 1415kJ for the non-Asian infants (n=526). The mean intake of most nutrients was lower in Asian NZ infants than non-Asian infants – carbohydrates (35g vs. 41g), protein (11g vs. 13g), fat (11g vs. 12g), vitamin A (274µg vs. 329µg), and vitamin B12 (0.49µg vs. 0.65µg). Similar mean intakes were seen in the groups for vitamin C (27.8mg vs. 28.5mg) and zinc (1.7mg vs. 1.9mg), and mean iron intakes were the same for both groups (3.0mg). The adequate intake (AI) from complementary foods for protein (7.1g), fat (7g), and vitamin A (244µg) were exceeded by Asian NZ infants, suggesting these intakes were adequate. Asian NZ infants had intakes of carbohydrates below the AI from complementary foods (51g), and significantly lower than non-Asian infants (p=.031). Asian infants’ intakes of vitamin B12 and vitamin C from complementary foods were below the AI’s but the AI’s include all complementary food and infant milk, and therefore conclusions around adequacy are unable to be made. Conclusion: There are differences in the intake of energy and nutrients from complementary foods, between Asian and non-Asian infants in New Zealand. While it was found that Asian infants had a lower mean intake of energy, macronutrients, vitamin A, and vitamin B12 compared with non-Asian infants, the study found that protein, fat, and vitamin A mean intakes from complementary foods were adequate in Asian infants. These insights are important to inform health professionals, as well as the general population, of the differences in intakes between ethnic groups in NZ. Future research would be beneficial to greater understand the complementary feeding period, including infant milk data and micronutrient status.