Special Issue "Complementary Feeding in Newborns"

A special issue of Children (ISSN 2227-9067). This special issue belongs to the section "Global and Public Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 5 January 2022.

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Maria Elisabetta Baldassarre
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Neonatology and Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Department of Biomedical Science and Human Oncology, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, 70124 Bari, Italy
Interests: evaluation of the effectiveness of non-invasive markers in digestive disease; clinical use of impedanciometry; relationship between probiotics and neonatal immunity

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Early nutrition and growth are key contributors to the modulation of both short and long-term infant health outcomes. The introduction of solid foods (thereafter referred to as weaning) is associated with major changes in both macronutrients and micronutrients intake, with the risk either of nutritional deficit or excess for infants undergoing a rapid growth during this period of life.

The International Scientific Societies of Pediatrics are in agreement on the optimal timing for the start of weaning.  The WHO also recommends continuing breastfeeding up to the 2nd year of life.  According to EFSA, breast milk sufficiently meet the nutritional needs of most infants up to 6 months of age. A clear association between the "timing" of introduction of solid foods and obesity in childhood has not been established yet, although infants who start weaning before 4 months are more likely to be overweight or obese.

Currently, research suggests to deepen the concept of personalized nutrition in all stages of life, including the earliest ones.  Therefore, we think that it’s important to focus on complementary feeding, regarding also the possibility of vegetarian weaning and baby-led weaning, representing the new frontier in the international panorama.

Prof. Maria Elisabetta Baldassarre
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All papers will be peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Children is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Complementary feeding
  • Vegetarian weaning
  • Baby led weaning
  • Personalized nutrition
  • “growing” milk
  • Protein contents

Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

Article
Complementary Feeding in Italy: From Tradition to Innovation
Children 2021, 8(8), 638; https://doi.org/10.3390/children8080638 - 26 Jul 2021
Viewed by 354
Abstract
Complementary feeding (CF) is a pivotal phase of the individual’s growth, during which children develops their future dietary habits. To date, only few studies investigated and compared weaning modalities between different geographical areas. The aim of this article is to describe the current [...] Read more.
Complementary feeding (CF) is a pivotal phase of the individual’s growth, during which children develops their future dietary habits. To date, only few studies investigated and compared weaning modalities between different geographical areas. The aim of this article is to describe the current Italian practice for CF in healthy term infants among different areas (North, Center, South) of Italy. Two different multiple-choice questionnaires were produced and sent to 665 Italian primary care pediatricians (PCP) and 2023 families with children under 1 year of age. As emerged from our investigation, in Italy CF is usually started between the 5th and 6th month of life. The preferred approach (chosen by 77% of families) involves the use of home-cooked liquid or semi-liquid ailments, or industrial baby foods. A new CF modality is emerging, consisting of traditional complementary foods with adult food tastings (10% of families). Approximately 91% of pediatricians give written dietary suggestions, and 83% of families follow their advice. We found significantly divergent weaning habits among different areas of Italy. PCP have a key role in guiding parents during the introduction of new foods in their infant’s diet and should take this as an opportunity to educate the whole family to healthy dietary habits. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Complementary Feeding in Newborns)
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