Trends in Commercial Complementary Food in Romanian Infants – a Cross-Sectional Study

Background/Objectives: Good feeding practices beginning early in life and are crucial for preventing all forms of malnutrition and non-communicable diseases. This time frame encompasses the delicate phase of complementary feeding, which traditionally involved homemade meals. The use of commercial complementary foods (CCF) began more than a century ago and represents a convenient alternative. We aim to outline both the profile of CCF consumers while accurately describe CCF dietary patterns. Materials and Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study analysing a final cohort of 75 infants 6-12 months admitted for various respiratory or gastrointestinal conditions to the Paediatrics Department of the "Grigore Alexandrescu" Emergency Hospital for Children in Bucharest, Romania, from June 2024 to December 2024. The mothers were requested to complete a two-section questionnaire. The first section elicited information on: child demographics, feeding patterns, nutritional status, ma-ternal educational level and monthly family income. The second section focused spe-cifically on the utilization of commercial baby food products. Results: Eighty percent of the study population consumed at least once a CCF product, p< 0.001. The CCF products were divided in 6 categories: milk-based products, cereals, pseudocereals, fruit jars/pouches, vegetables puree and meat jars and biscuits and pastas (flour-based products) similar to the one from European Commission. First administered products were in order of their distribution: biscuits and pastas in 16 infants (26.7%), fruits puree in 14 infants (23.3 %), cereals (including pseudocereals) in 12 infants (20%) and yogurt and vegetables/vegetables with meat jars, each in 9 infants (15%), p=0,530. Median [IQR] age at first administration of a CCF product is 6 months [5.25-7]. CCF consumption was not overall influenced by family income or educational level; however, at an in-dividual level, we identified pseudocereals consume associated with higher education and income (p=0.008 respectively p=0.011). Amongst the most utilised vegetables were sweet potatoes, carrots, zucchini, among the fruits were apples and banana and chicken-meat was the most offered. Overall perception of mothers on CCF was fa-vourable, within the motivations and advantages of using them being their diversity and convenience. Conclusion: CCF are intensely utilized in our country. Regarding the composition of these products, there is a combination between traditions and new di-etary tendencies. Longitudinal, further studies, are necessary to characterize the long-term effects of this feeding pattern.