Meal Patterns, Food Consumption, and Weight Changes in Children Prone to Overeating

Overeating - eating beyond nutritional needs or consuming large amounts quickly - is linked to weight gain. We studied whether self-reported (SR) or parent-reported (PR) overeating in children is cross-sectionally associated with differences in meal patterns and food consumption and longitudinally predicts changes in body mass index z score (BMIz) during adolescence.

This study included 5,827 children (mean age 11.2 years) from the Finnish Health in Teens cohort. At baseline, parents reported their child's tendency to overeat, while children self-reported overeating, specific dietary factors, and physical activity. BMIz were calculated at baseline and after 2.7 years. Longitudinal associations were analysed using general linear models with backward stepwise model selection to identify the minimal adequate model.

The prevalence of SR overeating was 4.2%, PR overeating 9.3%, and their combination 0.8%. Irregular meal patterns and frequent unstructured snacking were more common among children with SR or both SR and PR overeating, and they consumed sugary products and fast food more frequently than children with only PR overeating or no overeating. Compared with children without overeating, the BMIz increase was 0.28 (95% CI 0.10-0.46) units higher for both SR and PR overeating, 0.15 (95% CI 0.07-0.23) units higher for SR overeating, and 0.08 (95% CI 0.03-0.14) units higher for PR overeating. The model was adjusted for sex, age, physical activity, and BMIz at baseline. Since meal patterns and food consumption were excluded during the modelling, they did not predict BMIz change.

SR overeating was a stronger predictor of BMIz increase than PR overeating, while having both was the most predictive. Interventions should focus on addressing overeating to aid in weight management during adolescence.