The Impact of Micronutrient Fortified Foods on Cognitive Functioning among Low-Income Children: A Pilot and Feasibility Study
Brain development continues throughout childhood and requires micronutrients for optimal maturation, but studies have typically examined only a limited number of micronutrients and there has been inconsistent use of validated cognitive measures. This study evaluated the impact of providing low-incom...
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doaj-c41f448595544ade9d66c7ac9cf973f92020-11-25T04:04:27ZengMDPI AGNutrients2072-66432020-10-01123351335110.3390/nu12113351The Impact of Micronutrient Fortified Foods on Cognitive Functioning among Low-Income Children: A Pilot and Feasibility StudyJuliana F. W. Cohen0Kelly Sagar1Mary Kathryn Dahlgren2Laura B. F. Kurdziel3Staci A. Gruber4Department of Public Health and Nutrition, Merrimack College, 315 Turnpike Street, North Andover, MA 01845, USACognitive and Clinical Neuroimaging Core, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA 02478, USACognitive and Clinical Neuroimaging Core, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA 02478, USADepartment of Psychology, Merrimack College, North Andover, MA 01845, USACognitive and Clinical Neuroimaging Core, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA 02478, USABrain development continues throughout childhood and requires micronutrients for optimal maturation, but studies have typically examined only a limited number of micronutrients and there has been inconsistent use of validated cognitive measures. This study evaluated the impact of providing low-income children with a daily fortified meal (570 kcal) in the form of a bar and shake containing >75% of the FDA Daily Values for all essential vitamins and minerals, as well as macronutrients (e.g., omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids and protein), in an afterschool care setting (instead of the usual meal provided) on cognitive functioning. Students aged 8–12 were randomly assigned to intervention (<i>n</i> = 19) or control (<i>n</i> = 16) meals. Students completed the Stroop Color Word Task, Trail Making Test, and Conner’s Continuous Performance Task (CPT) at baseline and 3 months post-intervention. Differences in cognitive scores were examined using 2 × 2 mixed model ANOVAs (Stroop and CPT) and ANCOVAs (Trail Making Test). Significant main effects of time indicated improvements in both intervention and control groups, but there were no significant main effects of group or group*time interactions. When the amount of meal consumed was examined, most results became non-significant, suggesting that overall meal consumption significantly impacted the observed results. Overall, this pilot study suggests that there may be limited additional benefits to short-term consumption of micronutrient fortified meals among low-income children in an afterschool care setting, and potential benefits observed may be directly related to the amount of food consumed.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/12/11/3351cognitive functioningexecutive functioningchild and adolescent dietmicronutrients |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Juliana F. W. Cohen Kelly Sagar Mary Kathryn Dahlgren Laura B. F. Kurdziel Staci A. Gruber |
spellingShingle |
Juliana F. W. Cohen Kelly Sagar Mary Kathryn Dahlgren Laura B. F. Kurdziel Staci A. Gruber The Impact of Micronutrient Fortified Foods on Cognitive Functioning among Low-Income Children: A Pilot and Feasibility Study Nutrients cognitive functioning executive functioning child and adolescent diet micronutrients |
author_facet |
Juliana F. W. Cohen Kelly Sagar Mary Kathryn Dahlgren Laura B. F. Kurdziel Staci A. Gruber |
author_sort |
Juliana F. W. Cohen |
title |
The Impact of Micronutrient Fortified Foods on Cognitive Functioning among Low-Income Children: A Pilot and Feasibility Study |
title_short |
The Impact of Micronutrient Fortified Foods on Cognitive Functioning among Low-Income Children: A Pilot and Feasibility Study |
title_full |
The Impact of Micronutrient Fortified Foods on Cognitive Functioning among Low-Income Children: A Pilot and Feasibility Study |
title_fullStr |
The Impact of Micronutrient Fortified Foods on Cognitive Functioning among Low-Income Children: A Pilot and Feasibility Study |
title_full_unstemmed |
The Impact of Micronutrient Fortified Foods on Cognitive Functioning among Low-Income Children: A Pilot and Feasibility Study |
title_sort |
impact of micronutrient fortified foods on cognitive functioning among low-income children: a pilot and feasibility study |
publisher |
MDPI AG |
series |
Nutrients |
issn |
2072-6643 |
publishDate |
2020-10-01 |
description |
Brain development continues throughout childhood and requires micronutrients for optimal maturation, but studies have typically examined only a limited number of micronutrients and there has been inconsistent use of validated cognitive measures. This study evaluated the impact of providing low-income children with a daily fortified meal (570 kcal) in the form of a bar and shake containing >75% of the FDA Daily Values for all essential vitamins and minerals, as well as macronutrients (e.g., omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids and protein), in an afterschool care setting (instead of the usual meal provided) on cognitive functioning. Students aged 8–12 were randomly assigned to intervention (<i>n</i> = 19) or control (<i>n</i> = 16) meals. Students completed the Stroop Color Word Task, Trail Making Test, and Conner’s Continuous Performance Task (CPT) at baseline and 3 months post-intervention. Differences in cognitive scores were examined using 2 × 2 mixed model ANOVAs (Stroop and CPT) and ANCOVAs (Trail Making Test). Significant main effects of time indicated improvements in both intervention and control groups, but there were no significant main effects of group or group*time interactions. When the amount of meal consumed was examined, most results became non-significant, suggesting that overall meal consumption significantly impacted the observed results. Overall, this pilot study suggests that there may be limited additional benefits to short-term consumption of micronutrient fortified meals among low-income children in an afterschool care setting, and potential benefits observed may be directly related to the amount of food consumed. |
topic |
cognitive functioning executive functioning child and adolescent diet micronutrients |
url |
https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/12/11/3351 |
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