Nutrition as Prevention of Diet-Related Diseases-A Cross-Sectional Study among Children and Young Adults with Down Syndrome.

Abstract

The aim of this study was to assess the diet of children with Down syndrome (DS) and to identify potential dietary mistakes made by their parents. The study was conducted among 195 parents of people with DS between November 2020 and March 2021. Data for the study were collected anonymously using the CAWI method. 122 (62.6%) people with DS did not eliminate any nutrient from their diet. By contrast, in the study group, the following numbers of people reported the following dietary restrictions: 51 (26.2%) gluten, 56 (28.7%) lactose, 17 (8.7%) casein, 26 (13.3%) sucrose, 2 (1.0%) histamine, 2 (1.0%) lectins, and 1 (0.5%) dairy. The most frequent response for vegetable and fruit consumption was once a day, with 83 (42.6%) and 87 (44.6%) parents indicating this. The most frequent response for dairy product consumption was every day, with 72 (36.9%) parents indicating this, while 36 (20%) parents stated that their children do not eat dairy products at all. In the study group, the most frequent response for meat consumption was several times a week, this was indicated by 107 (54.9%) parents, while 1 (0.5%) of them said that their children do not eat meat products at all. The most frequent response for fish consumption was 1-2 times a week, this answer was indicated by 101 (51.8%) parents, while 13 (6.7%) said that their children do not eat these products at all. A majority of the subjects with DS are usually fed in a normal way, but nutritional mistakes are made by the parents. Special attention should be paid to prolonging the period of natural feeding.