2011 Annual Report 1a.Objectives (from AD-416) Objective 1: Using NHANES data, examine in U.S. children;. 1)dietary fat intake overall, and specifically, intake and major contributing food sources of fatty acids;. 2)carbohydrate intake overall, and specifically, intake and major contributing food sources of total sugar, added sugar, and dietary fiber; and. 3)prevalence of overweight according to dietary intake of total fat, fatty acids, total carbohydrate, total sugar, added sugar, and dietary fiber. Objective 2: Adapt the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans Adherence Index (DGAI) for use with children by developing age-group specific indices. Compare the explanatory ability of these new indices with the existing Healthy Eating Index in terms of excess adiposity and health outcomes in U.S. children using NHANES data. 1b.Approach (from AD-416) “Childhood Dietary Intake, Dietary Guidelines Adherence, and Excess Adiposity”, will use the most recent cycles of NHANES data to retrospectively examine dietary fat and carbohydrate compositions, and associations with patterns of obesity and adverse health outcomes in U.S. children. Results from these examinations will be used to develop child-specific indices of dietary quality that assess dietary adequacy, excess and composition, and that better explain obesity and adverse health outcomes in children. 3.Progress Report From October to March collaborative analyses involving large, publicly available regional and national datasets were conducted with researchers from the ARS Delta Obesity Research Unit, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, University of Southern Mississippi, Louisiana State University Pennington Biomedical Research Center, and Southeastern Louisiana University. These analyses involved the evaluation of diet quality among Lower Mississippi Delta residents; the identification of the top five dietary sources contributing to components of diet quality; simulation modeling to determine the effects of substituting familiar, more healthful foods and beverages for less healthy ones on diet quality and total energy intake in Lower Mississippi Delta adults; and the determination of school characteristics associated with health and unhealthy foodservice practices or healthy food preparation practices in a nationally representative sample of schools.