Foods and drinks at four daily time intervals in a group of young children.

This study provides information about snacks and drinks regularly consumed by a group of 2139 4-year-old children. Data were collected through a simple questionnaire completed at interview. Findings were related to caries levels measured at clinical examination 6 months later. Results confirmed that nearly all children had one or more snacks or drinks on most days. The most popular time for these was mid-afternoon. Sweet biscuits and fruit were the most popular snack foods and diluted fruit squash and milk the most popular drinks. Caries, as expressed in mean dmft, increased significantly with increasing number of intakes.