ArticlePediatrics2016
Association of Dietary Variety and Diversity With Body Mass Index in US Preschool Children.
Article in Pediatrics, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 30 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
30 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Dietary diversity score and cardio-metabolic risk factors: an updated systematic review and meta-analysis.Eating and weight disorders : EWD · 2022Pooled it
- Adherence to National Food Guide Recommendations: Can It Slow the Obesity Epidemic? A Systematic Review.Current nutrition reports · 2020Pooled it
- Dietary Diversity Score Associated With a Reduced Risk of Breast Cancer: A Large Population-Based Incident Case-Control Study.Current developments in nutrition · 2026Article
- Article
- Dietary diversity status and influencing factors among children aged 3-7 in China.Frontiers in nutrition · 2026Article
- Gender differences in parent-child alienation and its relationship to depressive symptoms in left-behind children: a comparative analysis of undirected and directed networks.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Diversity of Plant-Based Food Consumption: A Systematic Scoping Review on Measurement Tools and Associated Health Outcomes.Nutrition reviews · 2025Article
- Relationship between breastfeeding duration, lifestyle and obesity in children aged 3-16 years: a cross-sectional study.Frontiers in nutrition · 2025Article
- Exploring Differences in Physical Health in Young Children With and Without ADHD.Journal of pediatric psychology · 2024Article
- Variety of High and Very Low-Energy Density Foods among Preschool-Aged Children and Associations with Food Intake, Diet Quality, and Weight Status.The Journal of nutrition · 2024Article
- Assessment of Diet Quality in Children and Adolescents with Overweight or Obesity in Greece.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Low Dietary Diversity for Recommended Food Groups Increases the Risk of Obesity among Children: Evidence from a Chinese Longitudinal Study.Nutrients · 2022Article
- Article
- Relationship between dietary variety, adequacy, moderation, and balanced diet and cardiovascular risk factors.BMC nutrition · 2022Article
- Relationship between parents' dietary care and food diversity among preschool children in Japan.Public health nutrition · 2022Article
- Methodological Aspects of Diet Quality Indicators in Childhood: A Mapping Review.Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.) · 2021Review
- Infant Feeding and Ethnic Differences in Body Mass Index during Childhood: A Prospective Study.Nutrients · 2021Article
- Association between Overweight and Diet Diversity Score: A Cross-Sectional Study Conducted among Tunisian Children.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2021Article
- Adherence to Lifelines Diet Score (LLDS) is associated with better sleep quality in overweight and obese women.Eating and weight disorders : EWD · 2021Observational
- The association between dietary diversity score and general and abdominal obesity in Iranian children and adolescents.BMC endocrine disorders · 2020Article
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5 authors.
Funding
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND
objectivesDietary variety and diversity are recommended in dietary guidelines, but their association with BMI in US preschool-aged children is unknown. This study examined predictors of dietary variety and diversity and their association with child BMI z score (BMIz).
methodsPrimary caregivers responded to a food frequency questionnaire. Child anthropometry was obtained concurrently (n = 340) and prospectively (n = 264). Dietary variety scores and dietary diversity scores were computed. Multivariable linear regression was used to model predictors of these scores and their association with BMIz concurrently and BMIz change per year prospectively.
resultsThe sample was 49.4% boys; 69.4% of the primary caregivers were non-Hispanic white and 46.2% had a high school education or less. Girls and older children had greater Fruit and Vegetable Variety (gender: P = .03, age: P < .001), Healthy Foods Variety (P = .02, P < .001), and Dietary Diversity (P = .04, P = .03) scores. Older children also had greater scores for Overall Variety (P < .001) and Moderation Foods (eg, high-fat, high-sugar foods recommended to be consumed in moderation) (P < .001). Having a non-Hispanic white primary caregiver (versus not) was associated with lower Dietary Diversity (P = .01). Greater Healthy Variety, Overall Variety, and Dietary Diversity were associated with greater annual increases in BMIz prospectively (β[SE] = 0.009 [0.004], P = .04; β[SE] = 0.007 [0.003], P = .02; β[SE] = 0.003 [0.001], P = .02, respectively), adjusted for energy intake.
conclusionsGreater dietary variety and diversity were prospectively associated with higher BMIz. Targeting dietary variety and diversity as an obesity prevention strategy in children requires careful consideration.
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