Nutritional status and diet assessment of children and adolescents with Down Syndrome

Abstract

The child with the SD has a higher incidence of several clinical complications from prematurity, heart and gastrointestinal malformations, respiratory complications to a predisposition to congenital leukemia and early-onset Alzheimer's. A varied and balanced diet is essential for the growth and maintenance of health. Learning to eat healthily from the early years is essential for anyone, but it can bring further important results for children with Down syndrome. This is because they are born with hypotonia; as a result, they spend less energy than other children and may have a tendency to obesity throughout life. Furthermore, hypotonia can also lead to chronic constipation, consume certain foods can help alleviate constipation, as well as combating the tendency premature aging, another characteristic common in people with Down syndrome. According to experts, minerals and vitamins deficiency in people with Down has been observed in several clinical studies. Furthermore, one of the third copy of chromosome 21 gene is responsible for the excessive oxidation of the peroxidase cells by the cells of these individuals. It is believed that oxidative stress, as it is called, may be one factor to cause hypotonia, common in people with Down syndrome. The recall of 24 hours is the quantification of food intake in the 24 hours preceding or during the day, through an interview by a skilled professional. It is a method that describes a wide variety of foods, and can be used to compare the average intake of nutrients and energy in different populations. In general it can be used to assess the average intake of foods and nutrients from a large number of people, since the days of the week are adequately represented, ie, it is expected that day is typical for the individual. After surveying the recall there is the need for transformation of data quantifying the nutrients and calories. The Nutrition Support Program - NutWin aims to assist the work of professional Nutrition and Food area, both in the execution of calculations for the Nutritional Assessment, and the organization of stored information. Also assists in the measurement of nutrient intake and in the decision making process during the preparation of Food Plans. Thus we consider important the careful evaluation of the power of people with Down syndrome to evaluate the specific nutritional needs of children, pre-school and school children, and an orientation towards a more balanced diet seeking to ensure the daily intake of the specific needs of people Down's syndrome. We aimed to assess the nutritional needs and the nutritional status of children and adolescents with Down Syndrome (DS). Method: Cross-sectional clinical study with primary data collection and clinical evaluation. The study will be conducted in the year 2016, after approval by the Ethics Committee of FMB-UNESP. The interview with 24-hour food recall and the anthropometric and subsequent nutritional classification evaluation will be carried out in Genetics Pediatrics clinic of the Hospital of Botucatu, in two stages being provided for the clinical evaluation of about 40 children in this period, and therefore will be applied through brief interview 40 people (adults) responsible for these children. Will apply the 24-hour recall of the previous three consecutive days consultation (Moment 1 M1) and after 6 months of the first evaluation (moment 2 - M2) to assess the nutritional said amount will be calculated through- NutWin [software]. Database will be constructed in Excel, statistical analysis will be performed with results presented in the form of graphs and tables. (AU)