A 2024 study analyzing the diets of over 4,300 infants in the United States using the Infant Diet Quality Index, also known as IDQI, revealed associations between diet quality from 0-12 months and select nutrient and ultra-processed food intake later when the children were 2-5 years old. Childhood diet has a strong influence on lifelong dietary habits. Nutrients of concern in the U.S. are vitamin D, calcium, potassium, and dietary fiber. The study showed that at age two, the IDQI score was positively associated with dietary fiber and potassium intake. At age three, the IDQI score was positively associated with dietary fiber, potassium, and calcium intake. At ages four, and five, IDQI scores were positively associated with intake of these and other nutrients. At all ages, IDQI score was negatively associated with added sugars and ultra-processed food intake. The IDQI is a useful predictor of select nutrient intakes in children 2-5 years old. This study was led by Alana Chaney from the University of California, Davis, in collaboration with Lauren Au and Charles Arnold from the University of California, Davis, Lorrene Ritchie from the Nutrition Policy Institute, Edward Frongillo from the University of South Carolina, and Euridice Steele from the University of São Paulo. It was funded by the National Heart, Lung, And Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health, the US Department of Agriculture/National Institute of Food and Agriculture, and the University of California Office of the President Historically Black Colleges and Universities Fellowship.