Infant2Child: Optimising nutrition in early life to reduce childhood dental caries (Infant2Child)
Infant2Child is a prospective observational study that seeks to understand early life influences on child health and evaluate the effect of a community-level early life nutrition program (INFANT) on dental health in early childhood. The study will recruit families enrolled in an existing study, Infant to Scale, which will evaluate the implementation of the INFANT program in Victoria. Infant2Child cohort will aim to recruit up to 3000 of the participants at 18-24 months. Participants will be assessed yearly between 2 and 5 years of age, in order to develop strategies to identify and prevent dental caries in children and evaluate the effect of the INFANT program on diet, toothbrushing and oral health in early childhood.
| Year | 2022-Ongoing | 2022-Ongoing | 2023-Ongoing | 2024-Ongoing | 2025-Ongoing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| Age | 18-24 months | 24-34 months | 40-46 months | 48-58 months | 60-70 months |
| N | in progress | in progress | in progress | in progress | in progress |
| RELEVANT LIFECOURSE DOMAINS | Allergies | ||||
| Biosamples | |||||
| Demographics | |||||
| Education and childcare | |||||
| Health services | |||||
| Medications and supplements | |||||
| Mental health and behaviour problems | |||||
| Neurocognitive development | |||||
| Nutrition | |||||
| Oral health | |||||
| Other health information | |||||
| Physical activity | |||||
| Psychosocial wellbeing | |||||
| Sleep | |||||
| Study Summary | |
|---|---|
| Study name | Infant2Child: Optimising nutrition in early life to reduce childhood dental caries |
| Study abbreviation | Infant2Child |
| Current principal investigator/s |
Mihiri Silva |
| Current project manager |
Nicole Biggs |
| Primary Institution/s |
Murdoch Children’s Research Institute - MCRI
|
| Collaborating Institution/s |
Deakin University
The University of Melbourne - UoM Dental Health Services Victoria |
| Major funding source/s |
Medical Research Future Fund - MRFF |
| Study focus |
Infant2Child has 3 key aims: 1) to evaluate the effect of a universal, early life intervention (INFANT) on dental caries prevalence and severity in early childhood; 2) to estimate the extent to which toothbrushing habits can influence the causal pathway from sugar consumption to dental caries in early childhood and whether these relationships are socioeconomically patterned; 3) to develop an early life omics-based prediction tool to identify children at risk of severe dental caries. |
| Sampling frame |
Participants are recruited from an implementation effectiveness study, Infant to Scale, looking at early life nutrition and lifestyle run by our collaborators at Deakin University. Children participating in the Infant to Scale implementation study aged 18-24 months will be invited to participate in Infant2Child. We aim to recruit participants from both the comparison group and participants in the Infant to Scale intervention group. |
| Primary study type |
Observational study |
| Year commenced |
2021 |
| Is this study ongoing? | Yes - the study is ongoing |
| Ongoing recruitment? | Yes |
| Sample size (N) |
468 (as at 18-10-2024) |
| Survey data available? | Yes |
| Imaging data available? | No |
| Linkage to administrative dataset/s? | No, no consent to link to administrative dataset(s) obtained |
| Biosamples available? | Yes |
| Are data available to others outside study team, with appropriate safeguards and structures in line with the cohort’s ethics and governance processes? | Yes |
| Are there any costs associated with data/sample access for approved requests? | There are usually no costs associated with access |
| Broadest type of participant consent available |
Extended consent (can be used for future ethically approved research related to this project) |
| Study Contacts | |
|---|---|
| Principal investigator/s |
Mihiri Silva |
| Project manager |
Nicole Biggs |
| Study Contact |
Email: [email protected] |