Abstract
Consumption of whole grains confers multiple benefits and is an important source of fiber; as such, federal programs have updated policies to support increased whole grain consumption. Limited literature is available on consumption among young children and before and after nutrition policy changes. We assessed whole grain and fiber consumption among children aged 12 to 47.9 months participating in the Feeding Infants and Toddlers Study 2008 (n = 2385) and 2016 (n = 1733) to address this information gap. The percent consuming whole grains was determined using predicted marginals and compared between years using t-tests from weighted logistic regression. For children consuming whole grains, the Usual Intake method was used to estimate mean grams of whole grains and fiber intake from whole grains. Models were adjusted for child age, sex, race and ethnicity, and total energy intake, and household poverty level, caregiver education, marital status, ever breastfed, and Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children status. A higher percentage of children consumed whole grain foods in 2016 compared to 2008 (74.4%, standard error [SE] 0.02 vs. 65.2%, SE 0.02; P = .0001) and they ate a greater amount of whole grains (23.4 g, SE 0.32 vs. 19.1 g, SE 0.23, P < .0001). Children in 2016 consumed 30.8% more fiber from whole grains compared to children from 2008 (P < .0001). Grams of whole grains consumed from sweet bakery items and cereal/nutrition bars (P = .0003) and baby food cereal (P = .0123) were significantly higher in 2016 compared to 2008. Whole grain consumption among young children aged 12 to 47.9 months was higher in 2016 compared to 2008, providing more dietary fiber. Despite promising changes between 2008 and 2016, many young children in 2016 were still falling short of meeting whole grain recommendations.