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Development of eating behavior and its relation to physical growth in normal weight preschool children
Insights
Eating behaviors in young children develop significantly by age 52 months, influencing weight gain. Meal duration emerged as a key factor linking eating habits to weight and BMI in normal-weight preschoolers.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Developmental Psychology
- Nutrition Science
Background:
- Understanding the interplay between eating behaviors and physical growth in early childhood is crucial for identifying potential developmental influences.
- Previous research has explored factors affecting child development, but the specific link between evolving eating patterns and weight gain in preschool years requires further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between specific eating behaviors and physical growth, including weight increment, in young children.
- To determine how eating behaviors change over time during the preschool years and correlate with physical development.
Main Methods:
- A longitudinal prospective study observed 11 normal-weight preschool children over 18 days at ages 40, 52, and 59 months.
- Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA) for repeated measures was used to analyze changes in eating behavior.
- Partial correlation coefficients and multivariate multiple regression analyzed the relationship between eating behavior, weight, and BMI.
Main Results:
- Eating behavior showed significant development between 40 and 52 months, with children achieving independent eating by the second observation stage.
- Individual variation in monthly weight increment began around 48 months, coinciding with the emergence of a relationship between eating behavior and physique.
- Meal duration was strongly associated with weight and Body Mass Index (BMI), while early eating behavior was influenced by growth history and familial factors.
Conclusions:
- Eating behavior is a significant factor related to rapid weight increase in normal-weight children, particularly around the initiation of self-feeding.
- The development of independent eating skills plays a critical role in the relationship between eating patterns and physical growth during the preschool years.
Abstract:
In order to examine whether some characteristics of eating behavior are related to physical growth and weight increment in young children, a longitudinal prospective study was conducted. The eating behaviors of 11 age-matched normal-weight preschool children were observed at lunchtime on 18 consecutive days. The same set of observations was carried out three times when the children were 40, 52 and 59 months old, on average. MANOVA procedures for repeated measures design revealed that the eating behavior of the subjects changed considerably between the first and second observation stages, whereas it did not change significantly between the second and third stages. It was considered that eating behaviour developed mostly between the first and second observation stages and that the subjects were able to eat completely independently by the second observation stage. The increment in the children's weight per month began to show individual variation at the age of 48 months between the first and second observation stages. Coincidentally, the relationship between eating behavior and physique first appeared at the second observation stage and a similar relationship was observed at the third stage. The partial correlation coefficients and the multivariate multiple regression of MANOVA were performed for this analysis. Meal duration was the factor most strongly related to weight and BMI, whereas in contrast, growth history and familial factors influenced the eating behavior at the first observation stage. The present results indicate that eating behavior was one of the factors related to the rapid increase in weight soon after or just at the time of initiation of complete self-feeding in normal-weight children.