The role of mindful parenting and children's weight in mothers' child-feeding practices

Parental Reflective Capacities: A Scoping Review of Mindful Parenting and Parental Reflective Functioning

Objectives

Two key parental reflective capacities-mindful parenting (MP) and parental reflective functioning (PRF) - have been shown to promote healthy parent-child relationships through parents' increased sensitivity and responsiveness to their children's needs in spite of parenting stressors. Despite the theoretical overlap between these two constructs, researchers have continued to examine them independently. Therefore, the purpose of this scoping review was to review the overlapping and distinctive outcomes and correlates in the empirical MP and PRF literatures.

Method

A comprehensive literature search across the MP and PRF literature for studies published from 2005 through early 2020 (pre-COVID-19 pandemic) was conducted.

Results

A review of 301 articles (n = 180 MP and n = 121 PRF) revealed overlapping study outcomes and correlates, including improvement in parent and child well-being, parenting behaviors, and attachment. Both MP and PRF literatures suggest MP and PRF are amenable to intervention-induced changes, although mostly documented in White mothers, which results may not be generalizable to diverse populations.

Conclusions

Researchers should consider the impact MP and PRF have on positive family relationships. Results suggest that scholars should consider investigating and intervening on MP and PRF simultaneously. Specifically, results identified MP and PRF convergent associations and perhaps synergistic impacts on positive parenting behaviors. Limitations and future directions are discussed.

Preregistration

This review was not preregistered.

The Influence of Parents' Nutritional Education Program on Their Infants' Metabolic Health

Childhood obesity is considered an epidemic in both developing and developed countries. Children obesity plays a vital role in children’s development and has a profound impact on their health in adult life. Although the etiology of obesity is multifactorial, it can be prevented. According to research, feeding practices, developing eating habits, and parenting styles are of primary importance. Despite the widespread access to information on children’s nutrition, parents still make many mistakes preparing their meals. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate the impact of parents’ nutritional education on children’s selected anthropometric-metabolic parameters during their first year of life. The study comprised a group of parents of 203 Polish infants. Their parents were randomly assigned to one of two groups: the intervention group received intensive mobile nutritional education for a year, while the control group received no intervention. Blood tests and anthropometric measures were performed on both groups at the beginning of the study and one year later. Our study showed that parental nutritional education influences, among others. the BMI Z-score (the difference between the groups was 1.039) and the TG/HDL ratio (p < 0.001) in children. The final results of our study showed that proper nutritional education could improve children’s nutritional status at the population level.

Does your past define you? How weight histories are associated with child eating-disorder psychopathology

PURPOSE

To examine how parents' and adolescents' weight histories were associated with parents' approach to eating/weight-related parenting and children's eating-disorder behaviors.

METHODS

Participants were 502 parents (69.3% mothers, 30.7% fathers) of children 12-16 years old who completed an online survey. Parents reported their own and their child's weight status during childhood and adolescence. Parents' and children's weight histories were categorized as "weight loss," "weight stability," or "weight gain" and were examined in relation to feeding practices and eating-disorder psychopathology.

RESULTS

Parents with a history of weight gain had greater personal eating-disorder psychopathology and more concerns about their child's weight than parents with weight stability or loss. They also reported greater parental overvaluation (judgment of themselves as parents according to their child's weight/shape). Children with a history of weight loss or gain were more likely to have eating-disorder behaviors than those with stable weight. Analyses revealed that results largely persisted after adjusting for child BMI-z.

CONCLUSIONS

Both parent and child weight gain between childhood and adolescence were associated with eating-disorder psychopathology, eating/weight-related parenting, and feeding practices. Pediatricians and clinicians should assess weight history when considering risk for eating disorders and obesity.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Level III, Evidence obtained from well-designed cohort or case-controlled analytic studies.

Estudos Psicométricos da Versão Brasileira da Interpersonal Mindfulness in Parenting Scale (IMP)

Resumo A Interpersonal Mindfulness in Parenting Scale (IMP) é uma escala de autorrelato que avalia a utilização de habilidades de mindfulness na relação entre pais e filhos. O objetivo deste estudo foi adaptar a IMP para o contexto brasileiro e investigar suas propriedades psicométricas. A adaptação para o português brasileiro foi realizada por psicólogas com características do público-alvo do instrumento. Na etapa de busca por evidências de validade, a amostra foi composta por 221 mães de crianças entre seis e 12 anos. Utilizou-se um questionário de caracterização da amostra, IMP e Questionário de Cinco Facetas de Mindfulness (FFMQ-BR). Os resultados indicaram que os itens apresentaram composição fatorial adequada, e a escala demonstrou consistência interna adequada e se correlacionou de forma positiva com escores gerais de mindfulness (FFMQ-BR). Recomenda-se o uso da IMP em futuras investigações brasileiras que tenham como objetivo a mensuração do nível de mindful parenting em mães.

Maternal Mindfulness Is Associated With Lower Child Body Mass Index Z Score

BACKGROUND

Parental mindfulness may be a novel intervention target for child obesity prevention.

OBJECTIVE

To examine associations between maternal mindfulness and child body mass index z-score (BMIz).

METHODS

In a secondary data analysis of preintervention data from a randomized controlled trial, we assessed survey and anthropometric data from English-speaking mother/child dyads enrolled in Head Start in south central Michigan (n = 105). Surveys included demographic information, child dietary intake, family meal frequency, and the Philadelphia Mindfulness Questionnaire. Multivariable linear regression examined associations between maternal mindfulness and child BMIz, child intake of fruits and vegetables, and frequency of family meals.

RESULTS

Children were M = 53.7 (standard deviation [SD] 7.5) months old, and mothers were M = 31.6 (SD 8.3) years old. The sample of children was 39% white, 26% black, 14% Hispanic, and 35% of children were overweight or obese. Mean maternal BMI was 32.0 (SD 8.3). Greater mindfulness was associated with child BMIz (β = -.02 (SE 0.01), P = .027) adjusting for child race/ethnicity, household food security, maternal education, maternal age, and maternal BMI. Mindfulness was not associated with child fruit intake, child vegetable intake or frequency of family meals. The results were consistent with alternative outcomes of BMI percentile (P = .016) and BMI at the trend level (P = .0595) at the trend level.

CONCLUSIONS

Greater maternal mindfulness was associated with lower child BMIz. Future work should consider mechanisms of association. Pediatric providers might consider supporting maternal mindfulness as one element of multicomponent strategies for child obesity prevention.

Coparenting in the feeding context: perspectives of fathers and mothers of preschoolers

PURPOSE

This study examined how fathers and mothers coparent around child feeding.

METHODS

Father-mother pairs (N = 30) of preschool-aged children (M child age = 4.1 years old) participated in joint or group interview sessions.

RESULTS

Three themes emerged from the qualitative analysis: (1) couples' division of labor regarding feeding tasks seemed to align with stereotypical gender roles; (2) couples noted that they attempted healthier family eating habits in comparison to families of origin and recognized the influence of extended family on their attempts at healthier feeding; (3) couples agreed on the importance of family mealtime, routines, and healthy meals, yet disagreed on strategies to limit unhealthy foods and achieve harmonious family meals.

CONCLUSIONS

This study identified processes of coparenting and child feeding areas that were particularly challenging to manage among parents, which could be important targets for childhood obesity interventions.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

V, descriptive study.