OBJECTIVE: This study assessed weight gain rate during the first year of life of lowsocioeconomic status infants and verified its association with feeding practices. METHODS: Weight gain during the first 6 and 12 months of life was calculated using birth weight and length data obtained from hospital records and anthropometric measurements done when the infants were 6 and 12 months old. Dietary data were collected during interviews with the mothers when the children were 6 and 12 months old. RESULTS: A total of 328 children were assessed, 184 boys and 144 girls. The girls gained more weight from birth to 6 months, as compared with the World Health Organization data (4,452kg versus 4,079kg p=0,000). From 6 to 12 months of age, the children's weight gain was significantly higher than that of the World Health Organization data for both sexes (1,929kg versus 1,688kg, p=0,000, for boys and 1,900kg versus 1,618kg, p=0,001, for girls). The boys who were exclusively breastfed for less than 4 months gained more weight from 6 to 12 months of age than those who were exclusively breastfed for 4 months or more (M=2,077, SD=0,777 versus M=1,814, SD=0,669, p=0.02). CONCLUSION: The children in this study showed excessive weight gain during the first year of life. Exclusive breastfeeding was a protective factor.
Breast feeding; Weight gain; Eating; Infant
