Maternal feeding practices and beliefs and their relationships to overweight in early childhood
A E Baughcum1, S W Powers, S B Johnson
1Department of Clinical and Health Psychology, University of Florida, Gainesville, USA.
Insights
This study found no specific maternal feeding style linked to childhood obesity. However, feeding behaviors differed between high and low-income mothers, suggesting socioeconomic factors influence eating habits.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Nutrition
- Maternal Health
- Childhood Obesity Research
Background:
- Childhood obesity is a significant public health concern.
- Maternal feeding practices are potential contributors to a child's weight status.
- Understanding these practices is crucial for developing effective interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and analyze new instruments assessing maternal feeding practices and beliefs.
- To investigate the association between maternal feeding practices and childhood overweight.
- To explore differences in feeding behaviors based on maternal obesity, child's weight status, and income level.
Main Methods:
- Development and factor analysis of the Infant Feeding Questionnaire (IFQ) and Preschooler Feeding Questionnaire (PFQ).
- Linking questionnaire scores with children's and mothers' anthropometric data.
- Comparing feeding practice scores across different maternal and child weight categories and income levels.
- Utilizing hierarchical linear regression to control for confounding variables.
Main Results:
- No specific maternal "feeding style" was significantly associated with overweight in young children.
- Significant differences in feeding behaviors were observed between mothers with high and low incomes.
- Maternal feeding practices did not appear to be a primary driver of childhood overweight in this cohort.
Conclusions:
- Socioeconomic status, specifically income level, appears to be a more influential factor in maternal feeding behaviors than specific "styles" related to childhood obesity.
- Further research is needed to elucidate the complex interplay between socioeconomic factors, maternal feeding, and child weight outcomes.
- The developed questionnaires (IFQ and PFQ) provide valuable tools for future research in pediatric nutrition and obesity.
Abstract:
To better explore possible factors that may lead to childhood obesity, we developed and analyzed two new instruments that assess maternal feeding practices and beliefs. The Infant Feeding Questionnaire (IFQ) assesses feeding during the entire first year of life and was administered to 453 mothers of children 11 to 23 months old. The Preschooler Feeding Questionnaire (PFQ) assesses feeding of young children between the ages of 2 to 5 years and was administered to 634 mothers of children this age. Each questionnaire was factor analyzed and mean factor scores were calculated and linked with the children's measured and mothers' self-reported weight and height. Mean factor scores from the IFQ and PFQ were compared between mothers who were obese (body mass index > or = 30 kg/m2) and those who were nonobese, between those who did and those who did not have an overweight child (weight-for-height > or = 90th percentile), and between those who had a low income (< or = 185% of the poverty level) and those who had a high income. To control for confounding variables and to detect interaction among variables, hierarchical linear regression was used. Results from this study did not suggest that there is a particular "feeding style" that is associated with overweight in young children; however, there were differences found in feeding behaviors between high and low income mothers.
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