BACKGROUND: Meals are provided at nursery schools for Japanese preschool children, and this may result in different energy and nutrient intakes on weekdays and weekends. The purpose of this study was to obtain basic information for public nutrition policies in early childhood by examining differences in energy and nutrient intakes of preschool children between weekdays and weekends using meal categories such as breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. METHODS: Energy and nutrient intakes were examined in 761 Japanese preschool children (423 boys, 338 girls) aged 3-6 years attending childcare facilities in seven regions in Japan. Data collection was based on non-consecutive four-day dietary records (two weekdays, two weekend days) in 2019 or 2020. Energy and nutrient intake by meal category were compared using a generalized linear mixed model adjusted for demographic factors. RESULTS: Total energy intake was significantly higher on weekdays for boys (1,478 vs. 1,415 kcal) and girls (1,349 vs. 1,296 kcal) (both P < 0.001). Weekday lunches had higher protein content and essential micronutrients such as potassium, iron, vitamins, and lower fat, saturated fatty acids, and salt, compared to weekend lunches. Similarly, weekday snacks also had significantly higher nutritional consumption for most nutrients compared to weekend equivalents. CONCLUSION These findings suggest that meals at nursery schools, particularly lunch and snacks, result in more desirable nutrient intake in preschool children. On weekdays, children consume meals with higher nutrient density, possibly due to the role of dietitians in menu planning. However, some children still fail to meet the Dietary Reference Intakes for Japanese, indicating a need for improvements in nursery school and home meals. More communication is needed between nursery schools and families, including sharing menus and recipes is essential. The results of this study are of value for development of public health nutrition strategies targeting early childhood.
Humans ; Child, Preschool ; Male ; Japan ; Female ; Energy Intake ; Meals ; Child ; Nutrients/analysis* ; Diet/statistics & numerical data* ; East Asian People

BACKGROUND: How community-based group resistance exercises affect the transition from robustness to frailty remains unclear. Thus, we conducted a retrospective cohort study to determine whether the trajectory from robustness to frailty over age differed depending on the duration of participation in group exercises. METHODS: We analyzed the Kihon Checklist (KCL) score of community-dwelling elderly residents of Sumoto city, Hyogo prefecture, who participated in community-based group resistance exercises between April 2010 and December 2019. Finally, 2567 older individuals were analyzed using multilevel modeling. The explanatory variables of interest were the frailty score measured using the KCL for each individual, where 0-3, 4-7, and ≥8 points denoted robustness, pre-frailty, and frailty, respectively. We considered age, sex, systolic blood pressure, pulse, duration of participation, and change in KCL score from baseline as possible confounders. Participants were classified as follows based on the duration of participation in the exercises: <3 times, short-term participation group; 4-6 times; mid-term participation group; and 7-13 times, long-term participation group. The mean duration from the baseline physical test for the total sample was 2.35 years (SD=2.51). RESULTS: The participants' mean total KCL score at baseline was 4.9±3.7. Multilevel modeling analysis revealed that the KCL scores changed by 0.82 points for each additional year of age (p<0.001) and changed by - 0.93 points for long-term participate group (p<0.001). The Estimated Marginal Means (EMM) of the KCL score was 3.98 (95%CI: 3.69, 4.28) points in the short-term participation group and was significantly worse than that of the long-term participation group at 70 years of age (p=0.001). The EMM was 4.49 (95%CI: 4.24, 4.74) at 75 years of age in the mid-term participation group and was significantly worse than that of the long-term participation group. The EMM was 3.87 (95%CI: 3.57, 4.16) in the long-term participation group and significantly better than that of the short-term (p<0.001) and mid-term (p=0.002) participation groups. CONCLUSION Participation in community-based group resistance exercises prolongs the transition from robustness to frailty. The improved KCL scores at baseline in the long-term participation group remained in the robust range at 75 years of age, which suggests the importance of initiating participation before the onset of functional decline.
Aged ; Checklist ; Cohort Studies ; Exercise Test ; Female ; Frailty/prevention & control* ; Humans ; Independent Living ; Japan/epidemiology* ; Male ; Resistance Training ; Retrospective Studies ; Social Participation