Juice and Water Intake in Infancy and Later Beverage Intake and Adiposity: Could Juice be a Gateway Drink?

Objectives: To examine the tracking and significance of beverage consumption in infancy and childhood.

Methods: Among 1163 children in Project Viva, we examined associations of fruit juice and water intake at 1 year (0 oz, 1-7 oz [small], 8-15 oz [medium], and ?16 oz [large]) with juice and sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) intake and BMI z-score during early (median 3.1 years) and mid-childhood (median 7.7 years).

Results: In covariate adjusted models, juice intake at 1 year was associated with greater juice and SSB intake during early and mid-childhood and also greater adiposity. Children who drank medium and large amounts of juice at 1 year had higher BMI z-scores during both early (medium: b 5 0.16 [95% CI 5 0.01- 0.32]; large: b50.28 [95% CI50.01-0.56]) and mid-childhood (medium: b50.23 [95% CI50.07-0.39]; large: b50.36 [95% CI50.08-0.64]). After covariate adjustment, associations between water intake at 1 year and beverage intake and adiposity later in childhood were null.

Conclusions: Higher juice intake at 1 year was associated with higher juice intake, SSB intake, and BMI z- score during early and mid-childhood. Assessing juice intake during infancy could provide clinicians with important data regarding future unhealthy beverage habits and excess adiposity during childhood.