Child diet and mother-child interactions mediate intervention effects on child growth and development.

ABSTRACT: This study examined whether child diet and mother-child interactions mediated the effects of a responsive stimulation and nutrition intervention delivered from 2009 to 2012 to 1324 children aged 0-24 months living in rural Pakistan. Results showed that the intervention improved children's cognitive, language and motor development through child diet and mother-child interactions. Although the intervention did not improve child growth or socio-emotional development, we observed positive indirect effects on child growth via child diet and on socio-emotional development via both child diet and mother-child interactions. In addition, child diet emerged as a shared mechanism to improve both child growth and development, whereas mother-child interactions emerged as a distinct mechanism to improve

SUBMITTER: Bliznashka L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8932723 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature