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Eating behavior and childhood overweight among population-based elementary schoolchildren in Japan

Hirotaka Ochiai1, Takako Shirasawa, Rimei Nishimura

  • 1Department of Public Health, Showa University School of Medicine, 1-5-8 Hatanodai, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 142-8555, Japan. h-ochiai@med.showa-u.ac.jp

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
|June 13, 2012
PubMed

Insights

Thoroughly chewing food and avoiding eating until full are linked to lower childhood overweight risk. These eating behaviors may help prevent obesity in elementary schoolchildren.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatrics
  • Nutritional Science
  • Public Health

Background:

  • Childhood overweight is a significant public health concern.
  • Understanding the influence of eating behaviors on childhood overweight is crucial for prevention strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between specific eating behaviors (eating until full, chewing thoroughly) and the prevalence of overweight in Japanese elementary schoolchildren.
  • To identify potential behavioral interventions for childhood overweight prevention.

Main Methods:

  • Cross-sectional study involving 4027 fourth-grade schoolchildren (9-10 years old) in Japan.
  • Data collected via self-administered questionnaires on eating behaviors and direct measurements of height and weight.
  • Overweight status determined using International Obesity Task Force criteria.

Main Results:

  • Chewing thoroughly was significantly associated with a decreased odds ratio for being overweight.
  • Eating until full was significantly associated with an increased odds ratio for being overweight, particularly in boys (OR: 1.50).
  • The association between eating until full and overweight was stronger in boys who did not chew thoroughly (OR: 2.02).

Conclusions:

  • Eating habits, specifically eating until full and insufficient chewing, are associated with childhood overweight.
  • Promoting thorough chewing may be a viable strategy for preventing overweight and obesity in children.

Keywords:
chewingchildreneating behavioreating until fulloverweight

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