Abstract
Introduction: This research describes a secondary outcome for the First Foods New Zealand (FFNZ) study. The FFNZ study aims to determine the relationship between the infants' feeding patterns (which include baby-led weaning and a ‘novel feeding method’ such as baby food pouches) with dental health, growth, nutrition, food, and eating behaviours.
Aim of research: To describe the age when the first tooth erupts, teeth cleaning habits, demographics, and ethnicity of the involved infants aged 7.0 months to 10.0 months. Also, this study assessed the association between the dental status of the participants and their eating frequency, drinks frequency, pouch use, and baby-led weaning.
Methods: Infants aged 7.0 months to 10 months from Auckland and Dunedin were recruited. Infants and their caregiver attended two appointments. During the first appointment caregivers completed a digital questionnaire about their infant’s oral status and feeding methods. Demographic information about the infant and their caregiver was also collected. During the second appointment, clinical dental photographs were taken of the participating infants. Photographs were assessed following an oral health assessment form using validated indices for dental caries, developmental defects of enamel, gingival status, eruption phase and intervention urgency. Descriptive statistics were used to summarise the questionnaire data.
Results: A total of 625 infants were recruited and of these, 438 infants completed the dental photographic assessment. No caries was observed in any of the infants’ erupted teeth assessed, and only two infants had a tooth with demarcated opacities. Individuals who regularly practiced Baby-Led Weaning (BLW) or consumed baby food pouches with a nozzle were found to have a higher likelihood of having partially or fully emerged teeth compared to those who did not frequently use pouches or follow the Traditional Spoon-Feeding (TSF) method.
Conclusion: This observational study found no association between eating frequency, drinks frequency, pouch use, and BLW with dental caries and developmental defect of enamel on New Zealand infants aged between 7 -10 months. The association between feeding methods and tooth eruption requires further investigations.
Keywords: baby food pouches, baby-led weaning, infant oral health, early childhood dental caries, complementary feeding, commercial infant food, dental photography.