Nutrition & Health

Biography

Biography: Iaroslava A Semenova

Abstract

Statement of the Problem: Saturated fat, sugars and sodium are over-consumed while vitamin C and fi bers are under-consumed among Russian school children. Food sources of energy and these nutrients in Russian 7-13 years old children’s diets are not well described. This study aims to close this gap.Methodology: A representative sample of 15318 records of school-aged children from the 2013 Russian national nutrition surveywas used to examine food sources of energy and nutrients. Autumn and spring one 24 h recall was collected. Statistical Software (SPSS v.23.0, US) was used to calculate the contribution of each food group to daily energy and nutrients intake. Results: The top food sources of energy were bread and bakery (14%), cookies and pastries (8%) and meats (5%). Top contributorsof total fat and saturated fats were meats and processed meats (i.e. ham and sausages) providing 20% in total. Table sugar was aprimary source of total (15%) and added sugars (27%); traditional sweetened fruit-based beverages-compotes and kissels-contributed14% and 16% respectively. Sources of sodium were bread and bakery (17%), soups (14%), processed meats (8%). Bread and bakery (25%), fresh fruits and berries (13%) are the main sources of fi bers, followed by soups (8%), compotes and kissels (8%). Fresh fruitsand berries together with fresh vegetables provided more than half of daily intake of vitamin C, followed by potatoes (11%), soups (8%), compotes and kissels (4%). Conclusion: Bread and bakery, meats, soups, compotes and kissels are the main contributors of both positive nutrients and nutrientsof concern. Considering that traditional diet represented by mostly homemade foods, recipe adjustment while cooking is a viableway to improve diet in Russian 7-13 years-old children. In addition, reformulation of industrial food products with a high content ofnutrients of concern (e.g. sodium in bread or other product solutions) has to be considered.