Evaluation of Type and Frequency of Snacks Consumption in 3-6-Year-Old Children in Rabor and Baft Cities (2011)

Torabi Molok¹, PourEslami HamidReza², Sajadi Alahyar³, Karimi Afshar Marziyeh⁴*,

 Karimi Afshar Mehrnaz³

Ÿ Received: 12. 08. 2015             Ÿ Revised: 26. 11. 2015              Ÿ Accepted: 14. 12. 2015

2. Professor, Department of Pediatric Dentistry, School of Dentistry, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran.

3. Assistant Professor, Department of Orthodontics, School of Dentistry, Kerman University of Medical Science, Kerman, Iran.

4. Dentist, School of Dentistry, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran.

*Correspondence: Kerman, Shafa St, School of Dentistry, Department of Orthodontics.

Tel: 03432119021        Fax: 03432118074                                                               Email: marzieh.afshar89@gmail.com

Introduction: Dental caries is a multifactorial disease. Diet has a major role in prevention of oral diseases as well as dental caries. The aim of the study was to evaluate the frequency and type of snack consumption among 3-6 year-old-children in Rbor and Baft in 2011.

Method: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 240 kindergarten children aged 3-6 years old in Baft and Rabor cities through multiple stratified systematic sampling methods. Data were collected by a demographic questionnaire (sex, parents’ education and their job, and number of children) and 2 checklists consist of daily type and frequency of snack consumption in kindergarten and at home. Data were analyzed in SPSS version 20 software using T and &chi² tests.

Results: In the present study, 125(52.1%) kids were boysand the rest were girls. 45.42% of snacks were cariogenic. The mean of weekly snack consumption by boys and girls were 45.68±18.98 and 46.05±18.10 respectively, and there were not any significant differences between them (P=0.879). The mean of snack consumption at home was meaningfully higher than that at kindergarten (P=0.000). Frequency of snack consumption in Rbor was higher than that in Baft, but the difference was not significant (P=0.493).There were not any meaningful statistical differences between fathers and mothers ‘educational level and the mean of weekly snack consumption (P=0.643 and P=0.762).

Conclusion: Based on the findings of the present study the mean of snack consumption at kindergartens in Baft and Rabor was high. However snacks provide a part of energy for children's growth, choosing healthy snack is necessary for dental health.

Key­words: Snack Consumption, 3-6 Years, Children, Baft, Rabor

Citation: Torabi M, PourEslami HR, Sajadi A, Karimi Afshar M, Karimi Afshar M. Evaluation of Type and Frequency of Snacks Consumption in 3-6-Year-Old Children in Rabor and Baft  Cities(2011)­. Journal of Health Based Research 2015 1(2): 145-153.