Assessment of nutritional knowledge among parents of 6-year-old children: food allergies and intolerances

Correct nutrition in early childhood plays an important role in the development of the body as the intensive process of physical and cognitive development continues. During this period, meeting nutritional requirement depends largely on parents. However, this challenge is complicated by the increasing incidence of food allergies and intolerances, which affect approximately 8% of children. The aim of this study was to assess parents' knowledge of nutrition, with a particular focus on food allergies and intolerances.

The study was conducted using an electronic questionnaire that included socio-demographic questions about general and specific nutritional knowledge and food allergies and intolerances. The responses of 240 parents of children aged six years who answered all the questions were included in the analysis.

The analysis showed that 71% of parents had very good general nutritional knowledge. However, parents of children with allergies showed a significantly higher detailed understanding of nutrition, especially in areas related to allergen identification. Compared to parents of healthy children, they were also better at selecting allergen-free foods. At the same time, the results of the study reveal significant gaps in the nutritional knowledge of parents of healthy children, highlighting the need for nutritional education in this population group.