Soda consumption and overweight status of 2-year-old mexican-american children in california

Objective: The prevalence of overweight in United States children, 2 to 5 years old, has increased 2‐fold since 1975, with the highest prevalence in Mexican Americans. The objective of this study was to determine the association between current soda consumption and overweight in 2‐year‐old Mexican‐American children. Research Methods and Procedures: The Center for the Health Assessment of Mothers and Children of Salinas study is a longitudinal study of the health of low‐income Latino pregnant women and their children living in the Salinas Valley, CA. Six hundred pregnant women were enrolled (October 1999 to October 2000), and their children were followed until 2 years of age. This cross‐sectional analysis includes the 354 children who completed the 2‐year follow‐up interview. Standing height (centimeters) and weight (grams) were measured at 2 years. Overweight was defined as ≥95th percentile of the sex‐specific BMI for each child's age. Results: Fifty‐five (15.5%) children were overweight. Over half (56%) reported consuming any soda in the last week. After covariate adjustment, compared with no soda consumption, <1 soda/d was not related to overweight (adjusted odds ratio, 0.97; 95% confidence interval, 0.47, 1.99), but ≥1 soda/d was significantly associated with overweight (adjusted odds ratio, 3.39; 95% confidence interval, 1.43, 8.07), and the test for trend was significant (p = 0.02). Discussion: At 2 years of age, the prevalence of overweight among the Center for the Health Assessment of Mothers and Children of Salinas cohort is higher than the national prevalence estimate for Mexican‐American 2‐ to 5‐year‐old children and is significantly associated with current soda consumption. Interventions to reduce consumption of soda in young Mexican‐American children should be considered.