Jornal de Pediatria · 7 authors, 3 centres
This summary was generated by AI from a single paper. It has not been reviewed by a clinician and is not clinical advice. Verify against the source before acting on it.
This cross-sectional study compared masticatory parameters among normal weight, overweight, and obese children aged 7 to 10 years in northeast Brazil. Obese children showed larger bite size, fewer masticatory sequences, and shorter feeding time compared with normal-weight children.
This cross-sectional study analyzed masticatory characteristics in 160 children aged 7 to 10 years in northeast Brazil, classified by nutritional status as normal weight (n=101), overweight (n=33), or obese (n=26). Nutritional and dental status, food intake, masticatory parameters, and orofacial myofunctional characteristics were evaluated. Obese children had a larger bite size in grams (median = 6.0, Q1-Q3 = 4.0-9.0, p = 0.049) and performed fewer masticatory sequences (median = 3.0, Q1-Q3 = 2.0-3.2, p = 0.024) than normal-weight children (medians = 5.0 g and 4.0 sequences, respectively). No significant differences were observed in the OMES-e score across groups. The authors acknowledge as a limitation that the cross-sectional design provides only a punctual assessment and does not allow establishing a causal relationship, highlighting the need for longitudinal studies. Food intake and number of meals were similar across groups, with about 70% of children reporting eating while distracted.
