Opportunities to Support Caregivers Feeding Infants and Toddlers through Extension and Nutrition Education

Infants and toddlers experience rapid growth and development, which necessitates changes in feeding practices throughout this period. We aimed to explore infant/toddler feeding topics that Extension and nutrition educators typically discuss with caregivers through formal curricula and informal conversations. A mixed methods study design was employed via 1) a survey conducted with educators (n = 92) to explore the context (formal curricula or informal conversations) and frequency of topics discussed related to infant/toddler feeding (5-point Likert scale: 1 = never to 5 = very often); and 2) virtual semi-structured interviews with educators (n = 26, across 22 counties, 50% rural), informed by survey results, to identify other topics of interest to caregivers and barriers in discussing these topics. Interviews were recorded and manually transcribed. Specific topics and frequency of discussion with caregivers were identified through content analyses. Most respondents taught topics related to feeding infants/toddlers through a formal curriculum (61%) or informal conversations (e.g., questions after a session, 70%), but did so rarely. Three major topics were most often covered via formal curricula and informal conversations: preparing healthy foods (29% formal, 90% informal), access to healthy foods (23%, 76%), and food safety (23%, 71%). Educators reported that caregivers expressed interest in additional topics (e.g., introduction to solid foods (65%), general nutrition (58%), breastfeeding (31%), food preparation (31%). Over half of respondents (58%) identified a need in their community for further information on infant/toddler feeding topics, although many (54%) noted that a lack of curriculum that addressed these topics was a major barrier. Preparing healthy foods, access to healthy foods, and food safety were identified as being both commonly taught and asked about by caregivers. Additional topics (e.g., introduction to solids) were identified as commonly asked about, but less commonly covered by an existing curriculum. For educators to better support caregivers of infants and toddlers, current resources on early feeding topics are needed. This work is supported by the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative Competitive Grants Program from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture.