Parental feeding behavior in relation to children's tasting behavior: An observational study

Staff perspectives on the feeding practices used in holiday clubs to promote healthy eating in disadvantaged communities

An increasing number of holiday clubs provide free meals to alleviate children's hunger during the school holidays. Holiday clubs are well-placed to promote healthy eating among children from disadvantaged communities who may be at risk of experiencing food insecurity, but currently little is known about the feeding practices used by staff and whether these are conducive to maximising opportunities to promote healthy eating. Unlike previous research which has predominantly studied feeding practices in parent-child dyads and childcare settings, this qualitative study explored staff perspectives on the feeding practices they use to promote healthy eating within nine UK holiday clubs working with children from disadvantaged communities. Nine individual interviews and four focus groups were completed with 27 holiday club staff during the 2019 summer holidays. Thematic analysis revealed seven feeding practice themes, including teaching about nutrition; encouraging balance and variety; modelling; involvement; non-food rewards; restriction; and reoffering foods. The results revealed that some staff implement various positive feeding practices which align with the existing evidence-base of feeding practices in other contexts, which is a promising finding given the current lack of information and guidance from which to draw on. However, staff also sometimes reported using maladaptive feeding practices, including overt restriction and punishment. These results emphasise the need for guidance on effective ways to implement feeding practices with children in holiday clubs. Indeed, staff demonstrated their receptivity to engaging with training resources to maximise their opportunities to promote healthy eating behaviours among children.

Caregivers' feeding behaviour, children's eating behaviour and weight status among children of preschool age in China

BACKGROUND

Childhood overweight and obesity have become significant public health challenges worldwide. The present study aimed to investigate whether caregivers' feeding behaviour and children's eating behaviour were associated with the weight status of preschool children in China.

METHODS

A cross-sectional questionnaire was administered to 912 caregivers of preschool children from April to July 2016. Caregivers' feeding behaviours were assessed by the Chinese Preschooler's Caregiver Feeding Behaviour Scale. Children's eating behaviours were evaluated using the Chinese Preschooler's Eating Behaviour Questionnaire. After controlling for demographic characteristics, multiple linear regression and logistic regression analyses were performed to evaluate the relationship between caregivers' feeding behaviour, children's eating behaviour and children's body mass index (BMI).

RESULTS

The results showed that weight concerns on the part of caregivers (β = 0.53) and food responsiveness on the part of children (β = 0.93) were positively correlated with children's BMI, whereas caregivers' responsibility for feeding (β = -0.68) and children's external eating (β = -0.53) were negatively correlated with BMI. Among caregiver feeding behaviours, weight concerns [odds ratio (OR) =4.54, p < 0.001] and behaviour-restricted feeding (OR =0.29, p < 0.001) were positively correlated with children's BMI. A child's food responsiveness (OR =4.04, p < 0.001) was also positively correlated with his/her BMI, whereas the child's satiety responsiveness (OR =0.42, p < 0.001) and emotional eating habits (OR =0.56, p < 0.001) were negatively correlated with overweight/obesity status.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study demonstrated that children's eating behaviour and caregivers' feeding behaviour were associated with weight status among preschool children in China. Behaviour interventions on caregivers and their children may prevent or reduce weight problems in preschool children.

Can Parenting Practices Moderate the Relationship between Reward Sensitivity and Adolescents' Consumption of Snacks and Sugar-Sweetened Beverages?

Background: Reward sensitivity has been associated with adolescents’ intake of unhealthy snacks and sugar-sweetened beverages. However, so far, there are no studies published describing the impact of parenting practices on this relationship. The present study will, therefore, investigate whether food parenting practices can moderate the association between reward sensitivity and diet intakes. Method: A cross-sectional research study was conducted among 14- to 16-year old Flemish adolescents (n = 867, age 14.7 ± 0.8 y, 48.1% boys) and a subset of their parents (n = 131), collecting data on daily intakes, reward sensitivity, and food parenting practices. Linear regression was used to assess the moderation effect of parenting practices (both adolescent- and parent-reported) on the relationship between reward sensitivity, and diet using SPSS 25.0. Results: In the main analysis (adolescent-reported), no significant moderation effects were found for parenting practices on the relationship between reward sensitivity and diet. However, the sensitivity analysis (parent-reported) showed a moderation effect for health-reducing parenting practices on the association between reward sensitivity and unhealthy snack intake (β = 0.297, 95% CI = 0.062, 0.531, p = 0.01). Conclusion: Given the difference in the effect of parenting practices between the adolescent- and parent-reported data, our inconclusive findings warrant more research in larger adolescent-parent dyad samples.