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Correspondence between children's nutritional status and mothers' perceptions: a population-based study.
Maria del Carmen Bisi Molina1, Carolina Perim de Faria, Pilar Montero
1Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo, Vitória, Brasil. mdmolina@uol.com.br
Cadernos De Saude Publica
|October 24, 2009
Summary
Mothers often misperceive their children's weight status, with low agreement between actual nutritional status and maternal perception. This highlights a gap in understanding childhood obesity and underweight, impacting health interventions.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Public Health
- Nutrition Science
Background:
- Maternal perception of child weight is crucial for health behaviors.
- Accurate assessment of childhood nutritional status is vital for early intervention.
- Discrepancies between perceived and actual weight status can hinder effective health strategies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the agreement between measured nutritional status and mothers' perceptions in children aged 7-10 years.
- To identify factors influencing maternal misperceptions of child weight.
- To assess the implications for childhood obesity and underweight management.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional survey of 1,282 children aged 7-10 years.
- Objective measurement of height and weight, classified using International Obesity Taskforce (IOTF) criteria.
- Assessment of mothers' perceptions of their child's weight status and statistical analysis using Kappa test and regression.
Main Results:
- Prevalence of overweight was 23.2% and underweight was 5.7%.
- Significant discrepancies were found between measured nutritional status and maternal perception, with low Kappa values (e.g., k=0.217 for underweight).
- Maternal perception was associated with child's gender and ethnicity, with particularly low agreement observed for obese children.
Conclusions:
- There is a notable lack of correspondence between children's actual nutritional status and their mothers' perceptions.
- Maternal misperceptions, especially regarding overweight and obesity, are common and influenced by demographic factors.
- Addressing these perceptual gaps is essential for effective public health interventions targeting childhood weight management.
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