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The Role of Regulation and Emotional Eating Behaviour in the Early Development of Obesity

Ana V Valero-García1, Marina Olmos-Soria1, Julia Madrid-Garrido2

  • 1Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Murcia, 30100 Murcia, Spain.

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
|November 27, 2021
PubMed

Insights

Parental behavioral regulation of food and children's emotional eating are linked to childhood obesity. These obesogenic behaviors appear early, highlighting the need for early family-based obesity prevention interventions.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric obesity
  • Child psychology
  • Behavioral science

Background:

  • Childhood obesity is a growing public health concern with long-term physical and mental health implications.
  • Understanding the interplay between parental feeding behaviors and children's emotional regulation is crucial for prevention.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between parental behavioral regulation of food and children's emotional self-regulation in relation to overweight/obesity status.
  • To examine these relationships in young children aged four and seven years.

Main Methods:

  • 123 children (62 boys, 61 girls) aged four and seven years were recruited and categorized by Body Mass Index (BMI) into non-overweight and overweight/obese groups.
  • Parents/caregivers completed the Childhood Obesogenic Behaviours' Questionnaire (COBQ) assessing food-related behavioral regulation and child emotional overeating.
  • Children's BMI was calculated based on measured height and weight.

Main Results:

  • Children classified as overweight/obese exhibited significantly higher scores on parental behavioral regulation scales compared to non-overweight children (M=2.94 vs. M=1.80).
  • Overweight/obese children also scored significantly higher on the emotional overeating scale (M=2.65 vs. M=1.47).
  • No significant differences were observed based on age or gender, suggesting early onset of these obesogenic behaviors.

Conclusions:

  • Parental behavioral regulation strategies and children's emotional overeating are significantly associated with overweight/obesity in young children.
  • Obesogenic behaviors manifest early in development, underscoring the importance of early intervention.
  • Family-based interventions targeting feeding behaviors and emotional regulation from birth are recommended for obesity prevention.

Keywords:
behavioural regulationchildhoodeating behaviouremotional eatingemotional self-regulationobesityobesogenic behavioursparental regulation

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