What do parents want for their children who are overweight when visiting the paediatrician?

The objective of this study was to determine whether parental preferences regarding primary care weight-management strategies differ by child age, gender, overweight severity, race/ethnicity or parental agreement that their child is overweight.

A survey was administered to parents of 2- to 18-year-old children who are overweight at an academic primary-care clinic regarding perception of child overweight, helpful/harmfulness of having the child present during weight discussions, and dietary-advice preferences. Multivariable analyses examined factors associated with preferred weight-management strategies, after adjustment for parent/child characteristics.

Eighty-three per cent of parents agreed that a child's presence during weight discussions is helpful/very helpful, 74% that paediatricians should prescribe specific diets, and 55% preferred specific vs. general dietary advice only (N = 219). In multivariable analyses, characteristics associated with helpfulness of child presence included older child age (vs. 2-5 year olds, 6-11 year olds: odds ratio [OR], 4.6; 95% CI, 1.3-16; 12- to 18-year-olds: OR, 23; 95% CI, 4-136), male gender (OR, 5.0; 95% CI, 1.7-10) and obesity (vs. overweight: OR, 2.8; 95% CI, 1.7-12). Characteristics associated with preferring specific diets included Latino race/ethnicity (OR, 5.3; 95% CI, 3-12), older age (vs. 2-5 year olds, 6-11 year olds: OR, 2.8; 95% CI, 1.1-7; 12-18 year olds: OR, 3.7; 95% CI, 1.5-10) and agreement that the child is overweight (OR, 2.3; 95% CI, 1.1-5) and, for specific dietary advice, older age (vs. 2-5 year olds: OR, 2.3; 95% CI, 1.1-5) and agreement that the child is overweight (OR, 2.1; 95% CI, 1.2-4).

Findings suggest that weight-management strategies tailored to child age, gender, over-weight severity, race/ethnicity and parental agreement that their child is overweight may prove useful in improving child weight status.