Mothers’ knowledge of nutritional programming influences DHA intake in children – analysis of nutrition of children aged 13-36 months in Poland

Introduction
Nutritional programming theory states that a deficiency or excess of nutrients can permanently alter a child’s metabolism. The detrimental effects of such deviation can cause health problems even during adulthood. Although this concept has existed for over a dozen years, it is not always used in practice. This research investigated the awareness of Polish mothers in terms of nutritional programming and its correlation with children’s nutrition.

Material and methods
The study was conducted using a questionnaire that verified the mothers’ nutritional programming knowledge, nutrition during pregnancy, and their children’s nutritional intake. The questionnaire was available online on various parents’ Facebook groups, forums, and websites concerning children’s nutrition. There were 363 women, 20-43 years old, with children under the age of 3, participating in this study. The survey was conducted in Poland from 2019 to 2021.

Results
Fourty four percent of mothers did not recognize the term ‘nutritional programming’. The level of mothers’ education was of primary importance, as those with a lower education overestimated their knowledge of nutritional programming. The majority of mothers were not knowledgeable about dietary recommendations for children. There was a correlation between mothers’ knowledge, breastfeeding, and docosahexaenoic acid intake in children. Mothers with proper nutritional knowledge breastfed longer (p = 0.041) and more often (r = 0.128, p = 0.017, 95% CI: 0.023-0.230). The higher the mother’s education level, the higher was the intake of DHA in children (r = 0.294, p = 0.006, 95% CI: 0.477-0.086).

Conclusions
The obtained results demonstrate that the level of awareness among mothers in this study was insufficient. This resulted in inadequate nutritional dietary intake among children. Mothers, especially those with lower education, must be adequately instructed on children’s nutrition.