Research: Research EditorialParental feeding practices and risk of childhood overweight in girls: implications for dietetics practice☆
Section snippets
Parental influence and control over food intake
Parents influence dietary behaviors of children both through the types and amounts of foods that are made available to children in the household at snack and mealtimes, as well as through modeling of eating behaviors and parental feeding practices that include aspects such as the timing, frequency, and social contexts of eating. Associations between the macronutrient composition of meals and snacks consumed by children and their risk of overweight have been investigated 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13.
Influence of parental eating behaviors, attitudes, and weight on parental feeding practices
Familial patterns of obesity have been well documented 4, 24, 25, 26. Both fathers’ and mothers’ BMIs have been found to be positively correlated with their preschool daughters’ weight status 20, 21, 27. However, parental obesity status may not be the best single predictor of a daughter’s risk of overweight. The relationship between parent and daughter overweight has been found to be mediated by parental eating behaviors, specifically disinhibited eating and dietary restraint 21, 27, 28.
Influence of child’s weight on parental feeding practices
Research suggests that food-related parenting practices may vary by the weight status of the child 20, 21, 27, 31, particularly among young girls. Specifically, Birch and Fisher showed that parental perception of overweight among their young daughters was positively associated with an increasing degree of control over or restriction of the types and amounts of foods consumed by the overweight child 20, 21, 27. This dietary restriction is thought to occur as an effort to instill healthful eating
The family environment model
As a result of research suggesting bidirectional associations between maternal and daughter factors, Birch and Fisher developed a model to illustrate these interrelationships (21). Based on an earlier model of obesity proneness developed by Costanzo and Woody (33), Birch and Fisher’s model suggests that the daughter’s weight status, combined with the mother’s restrained or disinhibited eating practices and concerns over her own weight, influence parental feeding practices such that the mother
Implications for practice
Dietetics professionals who work with children should be aware of the influences that food-related parenting practices can have on the risk of a child becoming overweight, particularly if that child is a girl. Dietetics professionals should also note that parents might alter their food-related parenting practices based on the perceived weight status of their child. Anticipatory guidance should be provided to parents on topics related to the normal progression of physical and psychomotor
J. Stang is project director and continuing education specialist, J. Rehorst and M. Golicic are students in the Master of Public Health Nutrition degree program and trainees in the Maternal and Child Nutrition Training Program, School of Public Health, Division of Epidemiology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis.
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Cited by (12)
Factors Related to Overweight and Risk for Overweight Status Among Low-Income Hispanic Children
2006, Journal of Pediatric NursingFamily environment and pediatric overweight: What is a parent to do?
2005, Journal of the American Dietetic AssociationCitation Excerpt :Because parents are responsible for the physical and social environments of young children, they are indisputably the first line of prevention for youth overweight. Research about parental reinforcement and restriction of food and physical activity has revealed that parents must walk a “fine line” when trying to promote healthful lifestyles in their children (66). Research on parental influences of diet in relation to adiposity are largely based on studies by Birch and her colleagues using primarily white, middle-class, young girls, and thus findings must be extrapolated to other groups with caution.
Clustering of diet- and activity-related parenting practices: Cross-sectional findings of the INPACT study
2013, International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical ActivityElementary School Personnel's Perceptions on Childhood Obesity: Pervasiveness and Facilitating Factors
2013, Journal of School Health
J. Stang is project director and continuing education specialist, J. Rehorst and M. Golicic are students in the Master of Public Health Nutrition degree program and trainees in the Maternal and Child Nutrition Training Program, School of Public Health, Division of Epidemiology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis.
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Supported by MCHB Grant 6T79MC 00000 7-16-1.