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Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Fathers' Food Parenting Practices and Children's Diets
Yilin Wang1, Brian K Lo2, In Young Park3
1Department of Counseling, Developmental, and Educational Psychology, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA.
Child Development
|June 10, 2025
Summary
Fathers' food parenting practices impact children's diets, but do not explain racial and ethnic disparities. Structural factors, like food access, may be more critical for minoritized children's healthy eating.
Area of Science:
- Nutrition science
- Pediatric health
- Health disparities research
Background:
- Racial and ethnic disparities in children's diets are well-documented.
- The role of fathers' food parenting practices in these disparities is not well understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine racial and ethnic variations in fathers' food parenting practices.
- To investigate the association between fathers' practices and children's diets.
- To determine if fathers' practices explain racial and ethnic disparities in children's diets.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional survey of 1015 U.S. fathers of children aged 2-6 years (2021-2023).
- Path analysis was used to examine associations.
- Data included father demographics, food parenting practices, and child dietary intake.
Main Results:
- Fathers' food parenting practices were significantly associated with children's diets.
- Little evidence was found that these practices explained racial and ethnic disparities in children's diets.
- Associations varied across racial and ethnic groups, but did not account for disparities.
Conclusions:
- While fathers' food parenting practices influence children's eating habits, they do not appear to be the primary drivers of racial and ethnic dietary disparities.
- Structural factors, such as access to healthy food environments, may play a more significant role in perpetuating these disparities for minoritized children.
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