Table 1. Sociodemographic characteristics of the participating children and their primary caregivers (2020–2023).
| Variable | n | % |
|---|---|---|
| Sex | ||
| Male | 41 938 | 50.7 |
| Female | 40 839 | 49.3 |
| Race/skin colour* | ||
| White | 21 534 | 26.0 |
| Black | 2760 | 3.3 |
| Brown (Parda) | 57 592 | 61.7 |
| Yellow (Asian) | 511 | 0.6 |
| Indigenous | 377 | 0.5 |
| Primary caregiver† | ||
| Mother | 80 406 | 97.1 |
| Father | 428 | 0.5 |
| Stepfather/stepmother | 19 | 0.02 |
| Brother/sister | 94 | 0.1 |
| Grandfather/grandmother | 1511 | 1.8 |
| Other | 309 | 0.4 |
| Primary caregiver education level | ||
| Illiterate | 871 | 1.0 |
| Functionally illiterate | 922 | 1.1 |
| Incomplete/complete elementary school | 30 000 | 36.2 |
| Incomplete/complete high school | 46 817 | 56.6 |
| Incomplete/complete higher education | 4155 | 5.0 |
| Primary caregiver employment | ||
| Yes | 7113 | 8.6 |
| No | 75 651 | 91.4 |
| Age by module (in months)‡ | Mean | ±SD |
| M1 | 2.4 | 0.3 |
| M2 | 4.7 | 1.0 |
| M3 | 7.4 | 1.1 |
| M4 | 10.4 | 1.1 |
| M5 | 14.5 | 2.2 |
| M6 | 20.4 | 2.2 |
| M7 | 27.8 | 3.7 |
Total sample comprised 82 797 children. Reported frequencies may not correspond to the full sample size due to missing data in some variable categories.
*
Self-reported classification according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics categories.
†
'Other’ category includes uncle/aunt, sibling, neighbour or other caregivers identified as responsible for the child at the time of data collection.
‡
Modules (M1–M7) correspond to the standardised age groups monitored by the programme, in months.