Nutrient intakes of 1–3, 4–6 and 7–10 year age group children: Analysis of diets reported in 1987–1988 Nationwide Food Consumption Survey

Abstract

The 3-day food intake data from 1987–1988 Nationwide Food Consumption Survey (NFCS) was used to evaluate the nutrient intakes of 1–3, 4–6 and 7–10 year old American children. Nutrient intakes were compared with 1989 Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDA) and percent RDAs were computed. On average, the children consumed 35 to 37% of their energy from fat, 49 to 51% of energy from carbohydrate, 15% of energy from protein, 13 to 14% of energy from saturated fat and 142 to 148 mg of cholesterol/1000 calories. Intakes of total fat, saturated fat and cholesterol were higher, while intakes of polyunsaturated fat and ratio of polyunsaturated to saturated fat were lower than the expert recommendations. Mean intakes of vitamins and minerals were adequate except for vitamin E and zinc for all age groups. Calcium and iron intakes were below the RDA (84% of RDA) only in the 1–3 year age group. Although dietary intake patterns observed in this study were in agreement with other survey results, caution should be used in applying these results to general the US population because of possible bias introduced by survey low-response.