Abstract P130: Association Between Ready-to-eat Cereal Consumption And Nutrient Intakes Among Children 2 To 18 Years, Stratified By Household Income: Results From The National Health And Nutrition Examination Survey 2015-2018

Abstract

Ready-to-eat (RTE) cereal has been associated with higher diet quality and dairy intake (it is often consumed with milk) in children and is an affordable source of under-consumed nutrients and whole grains. Because of its affordability and accessibility, the contribution of RTE cereal to nutrient and whole grain intake could potentially differ by household income level. We hypothesized that children living in low income households, which may be more susceptible to poor dietary intakes due to food insecurity, may differentially benefit, in terms of nutrient intake, from RTE cereal consumption compared to children in higher income households. The objective of this study was to quantify the nutrient intakes of U.S. children who reported consuming RTE cereal eater versus those that did not according to household income. We used data from the 2015-2016 and 2017-2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, a nationally representative, cross-sectional survey. Children 2 to 18 years (n=5,028) were stratified into six groups according to RTE cereal consumption (cereal eaters vs non-eaters) and poverty-to-income ratio (PIR; low-, mid-, and high-income). We calculated the difference in intakes of 28 nutrients between cereal eaters and non-eaters stratified by PIR. Overall, it appeared that there was a greater difference in intake of nutrients between RTE cereal eaters and non-eaters for the low-income compared to the high-income children. For example, in the low-income group, RTE cereal eaters had 23% higher calcium, 70% higher iron, and 90% higher vitamin D intake compared to non-RTE cereal eaters (p<0.0001 for all). In the high-income group, these differences were attenuated with cereal eaters having 12% higher calcium (p=0.03), 58% higher iron (p<0.0001), and 62% higher vitamin D intake (p<0.0001) compared to non-RTE cereal eaters. These data suggest that although cereal eaters had higher intake of under-consumed nutrients across all incomes, children in the low-income group particularly benefited.