nutrients-logo

Journal Browser

Journal Browser

Nutrition in Children's Growth and Development

A special issue of Nutrients (ISSN 2072-6643). This special issue belongs to the section "Pediatric Nutrition".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 5 April 2025 | Viewed by 542

Special Issue Editors


E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Pediatrics I, George Emil Palade University of Medicine, Pharmacy, Science and Technology of Târgu Mureș, 540136 Targu Mures, Romania
Interests: pediatric gastrointestinal diseases; nutrition assessment; child nutrition; childhood obesity; metabolic diseases; metabolism
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Pediatrics 3, University of Medicine, Pharmacy, Sciences and Technology George Emil Palade from Târgu Mureș, Gheorghe Marinescu Street No. 38, 540136 Târgu Mureș, Romania
Interests: pediatric gastritis; pediatric obesity; genetic traits of obesity; child nutrition; gastrointestinal diseases
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

As children’s growth and nutrition involves complex biological processes, requiring adequate nutrient intake, continuous efforts are made by non-governmental, non-profit organizations each year to reduce the incidence of malnutrition in vulnerable areas that can significantly hinder neuro-psychomotor development. Moreover, nutrient and vitamin deficiencies can be responsible for isolated symptoms or can silently evolve for years before causing a variety of issues such as concentration problems, neuropsychiatric disorders or a predisposition towards infections. Iron and vitamin D deficiency still remain the most common deficiencies at both pediatric and adult ages.

Early childhood nutritional status is greatly impacted by the mother’s pre-conceptional and pregnancy nutrition, her anthropometric parameters and pregnancy-related weight gain. Recent data show how maternal nutrition influences the first 1000 days of a child’s life, affecting their neuro-developmental stages as well.
Inappropriate, imbalanced nutrition and excessive caloric intake can lead to obesity. Unfortunately, obesity is currently considered a pandemic at pediatric ages as well, and its adulthood-related complications seem to trace back to adolescence. Pediatric obesity and the nutritional patterns that lead to its development consistute one of the most researched topics.

Dietary patterns are responsible for changes within the gut microbiome and for its variability. Unanswered questions remain about the relationship between nutritional status and the microbiome imbalances that can be causative of gastrointestinal disorders, although significant progress has been made in this regard.

Ultimately, nutrition is responsible for a child’s health and for their normal growth and development as well. Thus, the aim of this Special Issue is to attract reviews and research articles from pediatricians, obstetricians and nutritionists on a global scale, focusing on the causality between dietary patterns, maternal diet and the child’s health. Moreover, this Special Issue will also cover topics related to nutrient and vitamin deficiencies, microbiome imbalances and their impact on the child’s well-being and anthropometric parameters.

Prof. Dr. Cristina Oana Marginean
Dr. Maria Oana Săsăran
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Nutrients is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • dietary patterns
  • child health
  • malnutrition
  • vitamin deficiencies
  • maternal diet
  • pregnancy nutrition
  • obesity
  • gut microbiome

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Published Papers (1 paper)

Order results
Result details
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

14 pages, 946 KiB  
Article
Vitamin D Status in Roma Mothers and Newborns: Socioeconomic Factors and Impact on Neonatal Outcome
by Andreea Bianca Stoica, Maria Oana Săsăran, Laura Mihaela Suciu, Adina Huțanu and Claudiu Mărginean
Nutrients 2024, 16(24), 4361; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16244361 - 18 Dec 2024
Viewed by 401
Abstract
Background: The Roma are a socioeconomically disadvantaged, marginalized community with reduced access to education, social services, and healthcare. Despite the known health risks they are exposed to, we have limited data about a wide range of health outcomes in this population, including vitamin [...] Read more.
Background: The Roma are a socioeconomically disadvantaged, marginalized community with reduced access to education, social services, and healthcare. Despite the known health risks they are exposed to, we have limited data about a wide range of health outcomes in this population, including vitamin D deficiency. The aim of this study was to investigate prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and its impact on the anthropometric outcomes of newborns in a group of Roma mothers and their infants in Romania. Methods: In total, 131 Roma women and 131 newborns were included in the study. Vitamin D levels in both mothers and newborns, as well as the birth weight, length, and head circumference of newborns, were recorded at birth. We also assessed socioeconomic factors, including education, employment status, income, and living conditions, as well as factors that influence vitamin D status, including sun exposure, use of sunscreen, fish consumption, and skin type. Results: All mothers and almost all newborns had vitamin D insufficiency or deficiency, with 25-hydroxivitamin D levels below 30 ng/mL. Maternal vitamin D status was significantly correlated with neonatal vitamin D levels (p < 0.01) but not with anthropometric outcomes such as birth weight (p = 0.57), birth length (p = 0.53), or head circumference (p = 0.96). Most study participants had a low socioeconomic status, reporting severe deficiencies in education, employment status, household income, and living conditions. Conclusions: Vitamin D deficiency is a significant public health issue among Roma women and their newborns, which may be compounded by the socioeconomic challenges of this vulnerable population. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nutrition in Children's Growth and Development)
Show Figures

Figure 1

Back to TopTop