Young Toddlers Research Articles

Soft soled footwear has limited impact on toddler gait.

The development of walking in young toddlers is an important motor milestone. Walking patterns can differ widely amongst toddlers, and are characterised by unique biomechanical strategies. This makes comparisons between newly walking toddler's and older children's walking difficult. Little is currently understood regarding the effects of footwear on the gait in newly walking toddlers. A quasi-experimental pre-post study design was used to assess whether spatiotemporal parameters of gait, and in-shoe foot and lower limb kinematics, differed when walking barefoot and in soft-soled footwear in newly walking toddlers. There were 18 toddlers recruited, with 14 undergoing testing. The GAITRite system collected spatial and temporal data. The Vicon camera system collected kinematic data. The testing conditions included barefoot and footwear. Footwear tested was a commercially available soft soled shoe (Bobux XPLORER). Data was extracted directly from the GAITRite system and analysed. Walking in footwear did not change spatial or temporal data, however there were small but significant decreases in hip adduction/abduction range of motion (mean difference (MD) = 1.79°, 95% CI = -3.51 to -0.07, p = 0.04), knee flexion (MD = -7.63°, 95% CI = 2.70 to 12.55, p = 0.01), and knee flexion/extension range of movement (MD = 6.25°, 95% CI = -10.49 to -2.01, p = 0.01), and an increase in subtalar joint eversion (MD = 2.85°, 95% CI = 5.29 to -0.41, p = 0.03). Effect sizes were small for hip and ankle range, peak knee extension, and subtalar joint ranges (d<0.49), medium for knee flexion/extension range (d = 0.75) and large for peak knee flexion (d = 0.87). The magnitude of kinematic changes with soft-soled footwear were small thus the clinical importance of these findings is uncertain. Future longitudinal studies are needed to develop recommendations regarding footwear for newly walking toddlers.

Association between parental and offspring BMI: results from EPACI Portugal 2012.

To assess the longitudinal association between parental BMI and offspring's BMI, in EPACI Portugal 2012. Longitudinal study with retrospective collection of children's anthropometry data since birth. Children's anthropometric data were gathered from individual child health bulletins, and parents' anthropometrics were self-reported. Children's and parents' BMI were classified according to WHO cut-offs. Linear mixed models with random intercept and slope for age were applied to quantify the association between parental BMI and children BMI Z-score (zBMI). EPACI Portugal 2012. Representative sample from the Portuguese population (n 2230) aged from 12 to 36 months. 58·9 % of the fathers and 35·6 % of the mothers were overweight (OW) or obese. Prevalence of infants who were, at least, at risk of OW increased from 17·0 % to 30·3 % since birth to 12 months. About half of the mothers with pre-pregnancy OW and obesity (OB) gained gestational weight above the recommendations. The children from mothers with gestational weight gain (GWG) below the recommendations showed a -0·15 SD lower zBMI (95 % CI -0·23, -0·06) in early life, comparing with mothers within GWG recommendations. Children of obese mothers were more likely to present a higher zBMI (0·24 SD, 95 % CI 0·13, 0·35) throughout the first months of life. A high prevalence of OW and OB was observed in Portuguese young adults and toddlers. Mothers' pre-pregnancy BMI and insufficient GWG had a direct effect on offspring BMI. Early effective interventions are needed in order to prevent the transgenerational transmission of OB.

Increasing Brand Awareness of Sunshine Children Centre by Highlighting its Unique Selling Points in a Promotional Video

Sunshine Children Centre, Semarang is an English Course established in 2005 by Sri Mulyani Gondowardono. This course teaches students from young toddlers up until Grade 6. Sunshine Children Centre’s main problem is the decreasing number of students due to the changes from offline to online classes and the fact that this course does not have any promotional tool. Therefore, after considering many factors, the best solution is to make a promotional video and upload it to social media platforms such as Instagram. The duration of the video is only a minute as a promotional video should not last longer than two minutes (Klass, 2018). The video highlights all of the three Unique Selling Points (USPs). The first USP is that this course helps students in their homework and give additional assignments. Second, it offers courses for small groups and private students while the last USP is that it accepts students from both regular and immersion curriculum. By having an engaging promotional video, Sunshine Children Centre will expectedly be able to attract new customers and maintain existing students.Keywords: online learning, promotional video, Unique Selling Points

Making Microwave Oven Doors Child Resistant to Protect Young Children From Severe Scalds.

Most severe child scalds in the United States involve food and beverages. The wide variety of burn mechanisms, however, makes prevention challenging. Over the past 15 years, we have worked toward protecting young children from 1 specific mechanism: children opening microwave oven doors themselves and spilling the heated contents, resulting in often severe scalds. In our published research, we documented the frequency and severity of these cases and the vulnerability of young toddlers to be burned in this way. We have presented our findings and ideas for prevention at multiple national meetings and enlisted college engineering students to design microwave doors that would thwart a young child from opening them. In 2017, we became active members of a national task group convened by Underwriters Laboratories to address this issue, and two authors became voting members on the Underwriters Laboratories Standards Technical Panel for microwave ovens. We worked with microwave manufacturers and others for >1 year to address concerns of the industry, including those related to potential impacts on older adults. This effort resulted in the task group proposing a change in the standard, requiring "two distinct actions" to open the door of a microwave oven. On September 17, 2018, the panel voted to pass the measure, which will require child-resistant doors for all new microwave ovens in 2023. This report highlights how research can inform and support child injury prevention advocacy. Children will now be protected from this type of scald as microwaves with child-resistant doors replace current models.

Bilingual Acquisition: The Early Steps

How different is the process of language learning in infants exposed to two languages from birth? Not so long ago, the available evidence pointed to a delay in language learning in bilinguals and suggested differences in several linguistic aspects between monolinguals and bilinguals. At present, the bulk of studies indicates the existence of specific adaptations to the process of language learning. In the current review, we discuss the existing evidence in several abilities in language acquisition in young bilingual infants and toddlers. We also examine studies investigating the impact of bilingual exposure in the emergence of cognitive and social abilities beyond language. We analyze the importance of clarifying several methodological issues and challenges, including the definition of bilingualism itself, for the field to advance.

Perceived Paternal Involvement, Relationship Satisfaction, Mothers' Mental Health and Parenting Stress: A Multi-Sample Path Analysis.

Research has demonstrated the short- and long-term impacts of maternal mental health and well-being on children's emotional and behavioral outcomes. It is thus important to better understand the antecedents of maternal depression and stress. The aim of this study was to determine whether the contribution of perceived paternal involvement to account for mothers' depression and parental stress was mediated by relationship factors such as parenting alliance and dyadic adjustment. A second aim was to determine whether these relationships hold equally true in mothers of infants and young toddlers (0–24 months) and mothers of older children (25 months and older). Cross-sectional data were collected from 447 mothers. Mothers reported on their perceptions of paternal involvement with childcare responsibilities, dyadic adjustment, parenting alliance, parenting stress, and depression. Multi-sample path modeling analyses were conducted. Results revealed that perceived paternal involvement was positively related to both dyadic adjustment and parental alliance, that parenting alliance was negatively related to all three subscales of parenting stress and mothers' depression but that dyadic adjustment was negatively related to parenting distress (one subscale of parenting stress) and mothers' depression. Results from the multi-sample analyses indicated that the pattern of relationships was the same in the two groups, but that the model was not invariant. The most notable difference was that parenting alliance did not significantly account for depression in the mothers of younger children. Correlates of maternal mental health and well-being identified in this study could be useful when designing psychological interventions for mothers and fathers.

The role of attention in listening-in-noise

Listeners of all ages are faced with having to understand speech in the presence of noise. One factor that might influence listeners' success at this task is their ability to attend selectively. We examine both adults' and toddlers' understanding of speech in the presence of nonlinguistic background noise – noise that is either easier or harder to attend to selectively. We also test the same individuals on a nonlinguistic selective attention task. Adult listeners easily take advantage of acoustic cues such as spatial location and frequency-range differences to help them attend selectively to, and comprehend, the target speech. Young toddlers (under 2 years of age) fail to use these cues. In addition, among adults, success at listening in noise is correlated with performance in a visual selective attention task, suggesting that domain-general attention skills are relevant for adults' listening in noise. This is less clearly the case for young children, however; indeed, children who were more easily distracted by extraneous sounds showed better speech understanding in noise. These findings suggest that the relationship between performance in challenging listening conditions and other cognitive skills undergoes critical changes across development.

The Use of Added Salt and Sugar in the Diet of Polish and Austrian Toddlers. Associated Factors and Dietary Patterns, Feeding and Maternal Practices.

Children aged <2 years should not be given meals with the addition of salt and sugar due to health risks and to promote healthier dietary habits. The aims of this study were: to assess the prevalence of the use of added salt (AS), sugar (ASu) and both salt and sugar (AS&Su) in the diets of Polish and Austrian toddlers aged 12–24 and 25–36 months; to explore the sociodemographic and early nutritional factors associated with the use of AS and ASu; to investigate the difference in dietary habits and maternal concerns about toddlers’ eating regarding the use of AS and ASu in toddlers’ diet. This cross-sectional anonymous study was conducted in 5893 mothers of children aged 12–36 months, recruited through social media in 2017–2019. The questionnaire consisted of questions about sociodemographics, early feeding practices and current children’s nutrition (e.g., use of AS and ASu, food frequency questionnaire). Multivariate logistic regression and cluster analyses were applied. Austrian mothers more often used AS than mothers from Poland (at 2 years old: 74.8% vs. 52.8%; at 3 years old 87.4% vs. 74.4%, p ≤ 0.001), however Polish mothers were more prone to use ASu (at 2 years old: 34.7% vs. 27.7%; at 3 years old: 59.0% vs. 45.8%, p ≤ 0.001). In younger toddlers (12–24 months), the odds of using of AS, ASu, and AS&Su increased with toddlers’ age, when the mother was a multipara, was not currently breastfeeding, or had exclusively breastfed for 4–5 months. This risk decreased when older toddlers (25–36 months) were introduced to solids by baby-led weaning (BLW). Toddlers from both countries who consumed meals with AS or ASu more often a followed Western-like dietary pattern. Our study emphasizes the need for parental nutritional education when beginning to introduce solid foods.

HOW TO OPTIMIZE INFANT FEEDING PRACTICES

Introduction. Obesity is one of the most important non-communicable epidemics of the 21st century. Rapid weight gain during first year of life is considered as a risk factor for childhood and adolescence obesity. Pediatricians play a central role in shaping healthy diets and combating the childhood obesity epidemic. It is necessary to optimize the teaching of child nutrition in the undergraduate and postgraduate studies, first and foremost, this concerns breastfeeding.Purpose of the study: optimization of infant feeding practices by updating the content of continuing medical education for physicians to improve their parental counseling skills.Materials and methods of research. A voluntary, anonymous survey of 40 primary care physicians on their infant feeding recommendations was conducted by random sampling. With the help of Google Forms, doctors were asked to answer 20 online survey questions. The prevalence of self-reported physician recommendations has been compared with current Guidelines for Infants and Young Toddler (2017) and parental self-reported responses, which reflects existing infant feeding practices.Results of the study and their discussion. It has been found that physicians spend an average of 15-20 minutes on counseling about breastfeeding, complementary foods or assessment and correction of feeding in the second part of the first year of life. Only 27.5% of doctors did not have difficulties in counseling parents. According to doctors, enhancement of counseling algorithms (42.5%) and printed material for parents (55%) could help to improve parental counseling practices. The main recommendations of doctors on breastfeeding, the timing of complementary feeding and the general list of supplementary foods are modern and have a significant impact on the practice of breastfeeding. In doing so, evidence-based recommendations provided by Feeding Guidelines for Infants and Young Toddler (2017) regarding iron-rich foods, potential high-allergenic foods, non-recommended foods, and responsive feeding have proven to be new to some physicians.Conclusion. In order to optimize the practice of breastfeeding, it is necessary to improve the training of pediatricians and family doctors during undergraduate studies and continuing postgraduate education. In the undergraduate program, greater emphasis should be placed on developing such competencies as effective communication of physicians with parents, and the elements of breastfeeding counseling and responsive breastfeeding may be included in the list of objective structured clinical exam skills. Continuing postgraduate physician education provides for continuous updating of knowledge as updated evidence-based recommendations emerge. The Feeding Guidelines for Infants and Young Toddler (2017) can now be offered as a prototype for national infant and toddler feeding guidelines, and the information contained therein is being disseminated.

The Role of Self-Feeding in Food Acceptance Among Toddlers

Abstract Objectives The ability to self-feed using utensils develops steadily from late infancy through toddlerhood. Here, we examine differences in food acceptance when infants and toddlers are self-fed versus caregiver-fed. Methods Caregivers (89% mothers) and their infants/toddlers (n = 57, 46% female, 86% black) aged 6–11 months (n = 13), 12–23 months (n = 29), and 24–36 months (n = 15) participated in laboratory visits that were video recorded. Children were offered both smooth and lumpy potato purees on a spoon. Caregivers were instructed to offer each texture until the child accepted 2 bites or refused 3 times. Trained coders watched the videos to determine who controlled each offer (caregiver, child, or both) and rated the child's acceptance of each offer (4-point scale: 0 = refusal, 1 = enforced, 2 = accept, 3 = anticipation). Acceptance was further dichotomized into refusal (0 or 1) or acceptance (2 or 3). Chi-square analyses were conducted to test the association between acceptance and who controlled the spoon offers for each bite, for each age group. Results Infants (6–11 months) were fed by their caregivers during 100% of offers. Younger toddlers (12–23 months) were fed the majority of offers by their caregiver (66%) and were the only age group to have shared control of some offers with their caregiver (4%). Older toddlers (24–36 months) were fed 50% of offers by their caregiver. An association was observed between acceptance and control of the spoon for both younger toddlers (χ2 = 16.21, P &amp;lt; .001) and older toddlers (χ2 = 51.22, P &amp;lt; .001). Both groups of children were more likely to accept smooth and lumpy potato purees when they had the opportunity to self-feed (Standardized residuals = 2.2 and 3.4) and were more likely to reject offers controlled by the caregiver (SR = −2.4, −3.7). Conclusions Both younger and older toddlers in our cohort were more likely to accept smooth and lumpy purees when they had the opportunity to self-feed compared to when they were fed by their caregivers. These findings suggest that giving children opportunities to self-feed may facilitate food acceptance during toddlerhood. Funding Sources None.

Biomonitoring of Aluminum in Urine of Young Lebanese Children Living in Beirut.

BackgroundAluminum (Al) is a ubiquitous, toxic metal to which infants and young toddlers are highly vulnerable. High Al exposure has been associated with various human pathologies. The aim of the present biomonitoring (BM) study was to provide a background for the levels of urinary aluminum (Al) in children ages 7 months to 4 years living in Beirut.Material/MethodsWe collected and analyzed 120 urine specimens using the Shimadzu Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer-6300 system equipped with an electrothermal atomization, and using a GFA-EX7i graphite furnace.ResultsThe mean and standard deviation of Al level in urine revealed 8.978±12.275 μg/L, which is within the lower range of each of populations in Germany, Taiwan, and Poland. Vitamin intake, powder rice, and the use of Al utensils proved to be major determinants for Al level in urine (significant at 95%).ConclusionsThe Shimadzu Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer-6300 system proved again to be an optimal and reliable instrument that can be used for the determination of Al level in urine, especially if using a GFA-EX7i pyrolytic graphite furnace. High levels of Al were found in the urine of Lebanese children. However, the frequent consumption of canned food did not prove to be a significant factor in determining the Al level in urine.

Interview with Belinda Barnet

Belinda Barnet is Senior Lecturer in Media &amp; Communications at Swinburne University, Melbourne. She is the author of "Memory Machines: the Evolution of Hypertext" (Anthem Press UK, 2013), which can be obtained, e.g., via https://amzn.to/2KjqlYH. Alongside her research career, Dr Barnet has worked as Service Delivery Manager (Wireless Content Services) for Ericsson Australia. She convenes the Social Media Major at Swinburne (https://bit.lv/312ARJY). Her current projects include building a speech recognition program to help young children and toddlers with Cochlear Implants learn to speak, and she'd be interested in hearing from anyone working in this field. She's also investigating Shadow Data.

The impact of wealth status on dietary diversity of infants and young children in the Philippines

AbstractIntroductionDietary diversity and socio-economic status are recognised as determinants of childhood malnutrition. The impact of wealth status on dietary diversity of infants and toddlers in Filipino infants and toddlers is currently unknown. Therefore, the aim of this analysis was to describe the impact of wealth status on dietary patterns using data from the 2013 Feeding Infants and Toddlers Study (FITS).MethodsThe FITS is a cross-sectional, national survey of infants (6–11.9mo;n = 362), younger toddlers (12–17.9mo;n = 360) and older toddlers (18–23.9mo;n = 373). Dietary data were collected using 24-hour recalls. Percentage consumption of food groups were calculated. Data were stratified by socio-economic status (SES) based on the characteristics of their dwelling units.ResultsFifty percent of the population were classified as low-SES, 20% middle-SES and 30% high-SES. Rice was the most commonly consumed food across all ages, followed by human milk and infant formula in infants and younger toddlers. Sixty-nine percent of infants from the low-SES consumed human milk compared to 41% of infants from the high-SES. In contrast, infant formula was consumed by 62% of high-SES infants compared to 25% of low-SES infants. Similarly, 54% of younger toddlers from the low-SES consumed human milk, compared to 24% of children from the high-SES, and only 10% of toddlers from poor-SES consumed toddler formula, compared to 47% of toddlers from the high-SES. Differences in non-milk based food groups were more evident in the older toddlers. Rice was consumed by approximately 90% of this population. Fish consumption varied by SES among toddlers (45% in low-SES compared to 33% in high-SES). However, pork, chicken and sausages were consumed by less than 10% of toddlers from the low-SES compared to 18%, 16% and 25%, respectively, from the high-SES. Vegetables were more highly consumed by toddlers from the low-SES (34%) than the high-SES (27%). Approximately 20% of older toddlers consumed cookies and 22% consumed sugar sweetened beverages, while cakes were consumed by 18% of toddlers from the high-SES compared to only 5% of toddlers from the low-SES.DiscussionDietary diversity in Filipino infants and toddlers is very limited. Rice, human milk and infant formula are the main source of nutrients for infants and young toddlers. Typically, there is low consumption of vegetables and protein-containing foods and high consumption of sugary foods, which is further impacted by SES. These data can be used to support public health initiatives to improve dietary diversity in the first years of life.

Egg Allergen Specific IgE Diversity Predicts Resolution of Egg Allergy in the Population Cohort HealthNuts

Egg allergy is one of the most common food allergies in children. Standard care for egg allergy involves assessing for tolerance to baked egg products. Egg white–specific immunoglobulin E has limitations for predicting tolerance to baked egg products. Researchers in this study investigated whether egg component-resolved diagnostic (CRD) technology could predict baked egg tolerance and development of tolerance to egg. Ovalbumin (Gal d 2) is the most abundant protein in egg white and is heat labile. Ovomucoid (Gal d 1) makes up a smaller percentage of protein in egg white but may be more significant because it is resistant to heating. The role of sensitization to Gal d 3 and egg yolk allergen Gal d 5 has not been well characterized.A subset of 451 subjects from the HealthNuts cohort were selected for this study. HealthNuts is a large population-based sample of 5276 Australian children recruited at age 1 year. Peanut and egg allergy were determined by oral food challenge.A total of 297 children with egg allergy had positive egg challenge results and were egg sensitized by a skin prick test (SPT) wheal >2 mm. This group was compared with 154 egg-tolerant children who passed egg challenge (57 had negative SPT results and 97 showed sensitization with an SPT wheal <2 mm). All children with egg allergy at 12 months of age were invited to participate in an additional baked egg oral food challenge. At 2 and 4 years of age, children with egg allergy had repeat egg challenge, SPTs, and specific immunoglobulin E (sIgE) tests (including CRD test for egg, which included Gal d 1, 2, 3, and 5 using ImmunoCAP). The association between egg allergen component sIgE and the risk of raw, baked, and persistent egg allergy was studied by generating the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve on the basis of sensitivities and specificities for a range of cutoff values for sIgE measurements. The area under the curve (AUC) along with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated.To determine egg allergy at 1 year of age, Gal d 1 sIgE and Gal d 2 sIgE provided ROC curves with AUC values of 0.83 (95% CI: 0.81–0.87) and 0.63 (95% CI: 0.60–0.67), respectively, whereas the AUC of egg white sIgE was 0.89 (95% CI: 0.85–0.92). To determine baked egg allergy at 1 year of age, sIgE to Gal d 1 and Gal d 2 provided ROC curves with AUC values of 0.65 (95% CI: 0.61–0.070) and 0.77 (95% CI: 0.73–0.81), respectively, whereas egg white sIgE generated an ROC curve with an AUC of 0.80 (95% CI: 0.76–0.84). Gal d 1 sensitization increased risk of persistent egg allergy by 2.5-fold. The presence of sIgE to all 4 egg allergens increased the risk of persistent egg allergy fourfold (95% CI: 1.25–14.07).Egg CRD testing offers no advantage over egg white sIgE for evaluating raw egg allergy and baked egg allergy at 1 year of age. Sensitization to multiple egg allergens Gal d 1, 2, 3, and 5 increases risk of persistent raw egg allergy.Baked egg challenges are frequently conducted when evaluating infants and young toddlers with egg allergy. Unfortunately, egg CRD testing does not appear to be any more helpful then egg white sIgE when selecting appropriate children for baked egg food challenges. There does not appear to be a role for routinely obtaining egg CRD testing when evaluating children with histories of adverse egg reactions.

Risk-tasking and Assessment in Toddlers During Nature Play:The Role of Family and Play Context

ABSTRACT Risk-taking during the toddler years is crucial for the development of autonomy, initiative, and independence. However, the current culture in the U.S. seeks to minimize the risks young children are exposed to. This small-scale, mixed methods study examined parental attitudes towards toddler risk-taking and children’s behavior during nature play. Each child in a young toddler classroom at a northern New England childcare program (n = 9) was observed for 90 minutes and their parents (n = 17) surveyed. Results show a wide range of risk-taking profiles for children in the same classroom. Parents were more concerned about children’s play at heights and least concerned about rough and tumble play, the most and least frequent activities children engaged in. Parents who rated outdoor play scenarios as more risky tended to have children who exhibited more risk-aversion. Suggestions for working with parents to understand the benefits of risk-taking in outdoor play are discussed.

Problems and advice during complementary feeding for infants and young toddlers

过渡期喂养是婴幼儿从乳类转换为固体食物的关键时期，也是学习进食技能和良好习惯的重要时期。适宜的营养和喂养不仅和婴幼儿早期的生长发育有关，也有助于成年后慢性疾病的预防。为提高儿科医生对婴幼儿过渡期喂养常见问题的认识，就喂养困难、体重不增、患病婴幼儿固体食物的添加等相关常见问题和处理方法进行讨论。.

Prevalence and determinants of vitamin D deficiency in infants and toddlers in the Netherlands: a pilot study

Background Little is known of the vitamin D status of young infants and toddlers and its determinants in West Europe. The prevalence and determinants of vitamin D deficiency of children aged 6–48 months in the centre of the Netherlands (52°N) is investigated. Methods In a cross-sectional population study, randomly recruited infants and toddlers ( n = 150) were studied using an online questionnaire and a physical examination either in late summer ( n = 52) or in late winter ( n = 98). Vitamin D analysis was performed by capillary blood sampling using dried bloodspots plus LC-MS/MS. Results In late winter, 32% of the children were vitamin D deficient (&lt;50 nmol/L 25OH vitamin D3) with 5% severely deficient (&lt;25 nmol/L). In late summer, 2% were deficient. The odds of vitamin D deficiency were higher in children aged 24–48 months, for those not using formula milk and those not adhering to the supplementation guidelines. Conclusion One-third of Dutch infants and toddlers were found to be vitamin D deficient in late winter. Suggested strategies for raising the vitamin D status may include improving the adherence to supplementation, a sensible sun exposure or the use of fortified foods. Special attention is needed for the children aged 24–48 months.

Differential Altered Auditory Event-Related Potential Responses in Young Boys on the Autism Spectrum With and Without Disproportionate Megalencephaly.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD), characterized by impairments in social communication and repetitive behaviors, often includes altered responses to sensory inputs as part of its phenotype. The neurobiological basis for altered sensory processing is not well understood. The UC Davis Medical Investigation of Neurodevelopmental Disorders Institute Autism Phenome Project is a longitudinal, multidisciplinary study of young children with ASD and age-matched typically developing (TD) controls. Previous analyses of the magnetic resonance imaging data from this cohort have shown that ∼15% of boys with ASD have disproportionate megalencephaly (DM) or brain size to height ratio, that is 1.5 standard deviations above the TD mean. Here, we investigated electrophysiological responses to auditory stimuli of increasing intensity (50-80 dB) in young toddlers (27-48 months old). Analyses included data from 36 age-matched boys, of which 24 were diagnosed with ASD (12 with and 12 without DM; ASD-DM and ASD-N) and 12 TD controls. We found that the two ASD subgroups differed in their electrophysiological response patterns to sounds of increasing intensity. At early latencies (55-115 ms), ASD-N does not show a loudness-dependent response like TD and ASD-DM, but tends to group intensities by soft vs. loud sounds, suggesting differences in sensory sensitivity in this group. At later latencies (145-195 ms), only the ASD-DM group shows significantly higher amplitudes for loud sounds. Because no similar effects were found in ASD-N and TD groups, this may be related to their altered neuroanatomy. These results contribute to the effort to delineate ASD subgroups and further characterize physiological responses associated with observable phenotypes. Autism Res 2019, 12: 1236-1250. © 2019 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc. LAY SUMMARY: Approximately 15% of boys with ASD have much bigger brains when compared to individuals with typical development. By recording brain waves (electroencephalography) we compared how autistic children, with or without big brains, react to sounds compared to typically developing controls. We found that brain responses in the big-brained group are different from the two other groups, suggesting that they represent a specific autism subgroup.

Formative Evaluation of an Online Responsive Feeding Training Program for Early Childhood Education Professionals (P11-068-19)

ObjectivesWith most US children enrolled in center-based childcare, there is a critical need for responsive feeding (RF) training and resources that target early childcare. This study explores the feasibility and user acceptability of an interactive online RF training program tailored for Early Childhood Education (ECE) providers of infants and young toddlers. MethodsThe RF program was developed by the investigators, with aid from a digital educational agency, and input from additional nutrition and early childhood experts. ECE providers (n = 27) completed an enrollment survey, knowledge pre-test, and interview about RF training and beliefs prior to gaining access to four RF modules (Overview; Recognizing hunger and fullness signs; Introducing solid food; Creating a home/childcare connection). Acceptability questions were embedded at the end of each module. Participants finished an evaluation survey and interview following completion. ResultsThe majority of participants were Black or African American (51.9%), non-Hispanic or Latino (96.3%), 31–50 years of age (59.2%), employed in a child care center (74.1%), and had > 10 years’ experience caring for infants or toddlers (70.4%). At enrollment, most accurately defined RF as identifying hunger and fullness signals (90%), but fewer considered RF as providing developmentally appropriate foods (72%) or establishing routines and setting limits (59%). Preliminary results from 19 participants revealed that over 40% took 90–120 minutes to complete the program and 32% took 120–150 minutes to complete. Modules were viewed from a computer or laptop (90%), when at work (42%), in > 1 session (63%). Over 2/3 reported that the information was unique from other training materials. All participants reported that the videos were easy to view and the program was easy to navigate. The program included printed resources, but 25% of participants did not print these resources. Except for a few technical issues in responding to embedded questions, participants overwhelming expressed approval of the training module. ConclusionsThis study addressed the critical first step of obtaining end-user acceptability of an online RF training for early childcare education providers. Necessary modifications will be made prior to evaluating efficacy and scale-up dissemination. Funding SourcesNemours National Office of Policy and Prevention.National Academy of SciencesNestlé Nutrition Institute

A Food Group Based Approach to Satisfy Nutrient Recommendations in Toddlers (12-24 Months) Using Dietary Modelling (P11-091-19)

ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to optimize the quantity of daily intake of food groups to meet energy, nutrient needs, and to assess differences in diets using fortified versus unfortified foods to provide nutrient adequacy in the second year of life. MethodsMathematical modeling was applied to the Feeding Infants and Toddlers Study 2016 (observed diet) data set to develop optimized theoretical toddler (12 – 24 months old) diets. The model was constrained to meet median energy requirements and appropriate nutrient reference values and minimize the deviation from the average observed diet. Only the complementary food component of the diet was modelled. Using the Nutrition Data System for Research (NDSR, version 2015: University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN), the current US fortification of grains and dairy were accounted for and the analysis was repeated without fortification. ResultsThe mathematically modeled diets revealed a lower quantity of food (613 to 732 g/day less) and energy (449.3 kcal/per day) were needed to meet nutrient recommendations, compared to the observed diet. The modelled diets contained less meat and fish and less starches and grains, compared to the observed diet. However, the modelled diets contained greater quantities of vegetables and fruit than the observed diet. Additional fruit and vegetables were required when the modelled diet was unfortified rather than when it was fortified. However, the fortified diet allowed for greater variety, and inclusion of other dairy (yogurt and cheese), and starches and grains compared with the unfortified diet. In terms of nutrient adequacy, the modelled fortifed diet met all recommendations, whereas the unfortified diet met all but vitamin D. ConclusionsOur results indicate that with the exception of Vitamin D, nutrient needs of young toddler age children can be satisfied with lower and more appropriate energy intake than currently observed. These findings can assist with dietary recommendations based on a food group approach, for meal planning, or for the development of food based dietary guidelines. Funding SourcesNestlé Nutrition, Vevey, Switzerland.