Fenilketonürili Çocuklarda Besin Neofobisi, Bozulmuş Yeme Davranışı ve Beslenme Durumunun Değerlendirilmesi

Abstract

This study was conducted to determine the validity and reliability of the Food Neophobia Scale and evaluate food neophobia levels, disordered eating behaviours and nutritional status in 111 volunteer children with phenylketonuria (PKU), aged 6 to 18 years, who were on a low-phenylalanine diet. The Cronbach's alpha coefficient of the 9-item scale was found to be 0,657, and it was decided to remove two items from the scale that reduced the scale's reliability. The Cronbach's alpha coefficient of the newly formed 7-item scale was 0,714 and the intra-class correlation coefficient was 0,857. The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) value of the scale is 0,701 and 2 factors were extracted from 7 items through exploratory factor analysis: (1) trusting new foods and (2) trying new foods. The results of the confirmatory factor analysis suggested the goodness-of-fit indices was acceptable. The Food Neophobia Scale is a valid and reliable instrument that can be used in Turkish PKU children. Higher scores from the scale indicate a lower level of food neophobia. Participants’ demographic characteristics, breastfeeding status and duration in early infancy, timing of complementary feeding introduction, anthropometric measurements, food consumption status and whether they like the food consumed, Food Neophobia Scale, Child Eating Behaviour Questionnaire for the 6 – 9 age group and The Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire for the 10 – 18 age group were obtained by face-to-face interview method. The last measured blood phenylalanine levels of the children were recorded from the patient’s follow-up file. The mean Food Neophobia Scale scores of the participants were 24,31±10,43, and there was no statistically significant difference based on gender (p>0,05). The Food Neophobia Scale scores of children with PKU who were breastfed for six months or more were lower than those who were breastfed for less than 6 months (p<0,05). For the 6-9 age group, as the Food Neophobia Scale score decreased, Food Responsiveness and Enjoyment of Food scores decreased (p<0,05), and the Food Fussiness score increased (p<0,01). Emotional Eating and External Eating scores decreased as the Food Neophobia Scale score decreased for the 10-18 age group (p<0,01). Among all the foods questioned, the Food Neophobia Scale scores were higher for ayran, eggs, red meat, fish, chickpeas, sunflower seeds, dried apricots, prunes and chocolate drink in children with PKU who had previously consumed the food and liked its taste rather than children with PKU who had never consumed or consumed that food and did not like its taste (p<0,05). Food neophobia is a problem encountered in children with PKU and negatively affects their eating behaviors and food preferences.