2.2. Data Collection
Dietary behavior, a mouth
DENTAL CARIES
The following data were collected soon after childbirth: child’s sex and anthropometric data (birth weight in grams and length and head circumference in centimeters), family income was collected in Brazilian currency, divided by the Brazilian monthly minimum wages (1BMMW= USD 80.00) and subsequently categorized in <2, 2–3, and >3, mother’s age (years), and mother’s educational attainment in numbers of years of school completed and dichotomized in ≤8 and >8 years.Nutrition undergraduate students not involved in the intervention program conducted face-to-face structured interviews with the mothers in their homes when their children were 6 and 12 months old. Dietary behavior variables were assessed at 6 and 12 months, using face-to-face structured interviews of the feeding practices’ beginning, duration, and frequency of during the previous six months. These interviews investigated, separately for each month, breast- and bottle-feeding during the day and night (yes/no). The 6- and 12-month interviews also explored, separately for each month, the use of a pacifier (yes/no). For this purpose, parents were asked whether the child had used a pacifier and, in case of a positive answer, the age of starting and stopping its use.The questionnaires were tested in a pilot study of 16 mothers of children aged 6 and 12 months attending primary care services and modified accordingly. Fieldworkers were submitted to a training program (12 h), which included simulated questions and answers using a standardized questionnaire. Moreover, supervision during fieldwork and data checking by an experienced nutritionist were performed to ensure the methodological quality of data collection.At 12 years of age, the participants underwent a clinical examination performed by a single calibrated examiner with the child seated on a standard chair. The teeth were brushed and dried with gauze. Each tooth surface was examined with a mouth mirror and a WHO probe under artificial light. The teeth were examined for dental caries [