Parental feeding practices across child’s weight status: Evidence of the Italian validation of the Child Feeding Questionnaire

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Livia Buratta ◽  
Elisa Delvecchio ◽  
Alessandro Germani ◽  
Claudia Mazzeschi
Keyword(s):  
Internal Consistency ◽  
Weight Status ◽  
Feeding Practices ◽  
Italian Version ◽  
Child Feeding ◽  
Parental Feeding Practices ◽  
Child Feeding Questionnaire ◽  
Parental Feeding ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Correlated Factors

Abstract Objective: The main aim of this study was to assess the psychometric proprieties of the Child Feeding Questionnaire (CFQ) in Italian mothers. Design: Mothers completed the Italian version of the CFQ, and children’s anthropometric data were collected. Construct validity of the CFQ was assessed by comparing three different models: (a) a seven correlated factors model in which all items were analysed; (b) a seven correlated factors model with composite items based on the Restriction factor and (c) an eight correlated factors model with a separate Reward factor. Measurement invariance using BMI categories and gender was evaluated. Furthermore, discriminant validity with group comparison was performed between BMI categories and gender. Setting: Italy. Participants: A total of 1253 6-year-old Italian children (53·9 % male) attending elementary school (1st grade) and their mothers (mean age = 38·22 years; sd = 4·89) participated in this study. Results: The eight-factor model with a separate reward factor provided the best fit for the data. The strict invariance of the CFQ across child BMI categories and gender was confirmed. The CFQ internal consistency was acceptable for most subscales. However, two subscales showed no adequate values. As expected, the CFQ scales showed significant differences between BMI categories, while no gender-related differences were found. Conclusions: The study indicated the Italian version of the CFQ to be factorially valid for assessing parental feeding practices of 6-year-old children across BMI categories. Future research should address low internal consistency in some of the CFQ subscales.

Child weight and parental feeding practices: a child-responsive model

2015 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 174-188 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisabeth Lind Melbye ◽  
Håvard Hansen
Keyword(s):  
Weight Status ◽  
Feeding Practices ◽  
Mediating Effect ◽  
Mediating Effects ◽  
Parental Concern ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Parental Feeding Practices ◽  
Child Weight ◽  
Parental Feeding ◽  
Wide Range

Purpose – The majority of previous studies on parental feeding practices have focused on the effect of controlling feeding strategies on child eating and weight (i.e. parental influence on children). The present study turns the arrow in the opposite direction, and it aims to test a child-responsive model by exploring the process in which child weight status might influence parental feeding practices, addressing potential mediating effects of parental concern for child weight (i.e. child influence on parents). Design/methodology/approach – A cross-sectional survey was performed among parents of 10- to 12-year olds (n = 963). The survey questionnaire included measures of parental feeding practices and parents’ reports of child weight and height. Stepwise regressions were performed to reveal potential mediating effects of parental concern for child weight status on the associations between child BMI and a wide range of parental feeding practices. Findings – Our results suggest a mediating effect of parental concern for child overweight on the associations between child body mass index and controlling feeding practices such as restriction for weight and health purposes and responsibility for determining child portion sizes. Originality/value – This study provides an extension of previous research on parental feeding–child weight relationship. It includes a wider spectrum of feeding variables, and integrates parental concern for both child who is overweight and child who is underweight as potential mediators of the associations between child weight and parental feeding practices. Moreover, it has its focus on preadolescent children, while previous studies have focused on infants and young children.

scholarly journals Parental feeding style, energy intake and weight status in young Scottish children

2006 ◽  
Vol 96 (6) ◽  
pp. 1149-1153 ◽  
Author(s):  
Colette Montgomery ◽  
Diane M. Jackson ◽  
Louise A. Kelly ◽  
John J. Reilly
Keyword(s):  
Energy Intake ◽  
Weight Status ◽  
Free Living ◽  
Child Feeding ◽  
Feeding Style ◽  
Child Weight ◽  
Child Feeding Questionnaire ◽  
Parental Feeding ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Changes Over Time

Parental feeding style, as measured by the Child Feeding Questionnaire (CFQ), may be an important influence on child feeding behaviour and weight status in early to mid childhood, but more evidence on parental feeding style is required from samples outside the USA. We aimed to use the CFQ in a sample of 117 Scottish children (boys n 53, girls n 64 mean age 4·6 (sd 0·5) years) to: characterise gender differences and changes over time (in forty of the 117 children studied over 2 years); test associations between parental feeding style, free-living energy intake (measured over 3 days using the multiple pass 24-h recall), and weight status (BMI sd score). No dimensions of parental feeding style changed significantly over 2 years in the longitudinal study (P>0·05 in all cases). No aspects of parental feeding style as measured by the CFQ differed significantly between the sexes (P>0·05 in all cases). Parental perceptions of child weight status were generally significantly positively correlated with child weight status as measured by the BMI sd score. In this sample and setting, measures of parental control over child feeding were generally not associated with child energy intake or weight status.

scholarly journals Evidence for gene-environment correlation in child feeding: Links between common genetic variation for BMI in children and parental feeding practices

PLoS Genetics ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (11) ◽  
pp. e1007757 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saskia Selzam ◽  
Tom A. McAdams ◽  
Jonathan R. I. Coleman ◽  
Susan Carnell ◽  
Paul F. O’Reilly ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Variation ◽  
Feeding Practices ◽  
Common Genetic Variation ◽  
Child Feeding ◽  
Parental Feeding Practices ◽  
Parental Feeding ◽  
Gene Environment

scholarly journals An exploration of the longitudinal relation between parental feeding practices and child anthropometric adiposity measures from the West Midlands Active Lifestyle and Healthy Eating in Schoolchildren (WAVES) Study

2018 ◽  
Vol 108 (6) ◽  
pp. 1316-1323
Author(s):  
Kiya L Hurley ◽  
Miranda J Pallan ◽  
Emma R Lancashire ◽  
Peymane Adab ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Weight Status ◽  
Feeding Practices ◽  
Fat Percentage ◽  
Height Ratio ◽  
The West ◽  
Active Lifestyle ◽  
Parental Feeding Practices ◽  
Parental Feeding ◽  
West Midlands ◽  
Waist To Height Ratio

ABSTRACT Background Some research suggests that parent or carer feeding practices may influence children's weight patterns, but longitudinal evidence is limited and inconsistent. Objective The aim of this study was to investigate the relation between various parent or carer feeding practices when a child is aged 7–8 y and proxy measurements of child adiposity at age 8–9 y (weight status, waist-to-height ratio, and body fat percentage). Design The study was a secondary analysis of data from the West Midlands Active Lifestyle and Healthy Eating in Schoolchildren (WAVES) Study comprising a diverse sample of parents and carers and their children from 54 primary schools in the West Midlands, England [n = 774 parent-child dyads (53% of the WAVES study sample)]. Information on feeding practices was collected with the use of subscales from the Comprehensive Feeding Practices Questionnaire, completed by the child's main parent or carer (self-defined). Child height, weight, bioelectrical impedance, and waist circumference were measured and converted into 3 proxy measurements of adiposity (weight status, waist-to-height ratio, and body fat percentage). Associations between these measurements and parent or carer feeding practices were examined with the use of mixed-effects logistic regression models. Results Of the questionnaire respondents, 80% were mothers, 16% were fathers, and 4% were other carers. Median standardized subscale scores ranged from 1.7 (emotion regulation: IQR = 1.0) to 4.0 (monitoring and modeling: IQR = 1.5), and significantly different subscale scores were present between child weight statuses for emotion regulation, pressure to eat, and restriction for weight control. Logistic regression modeling showed that when baseline adiposity measures were included as covariates, all associations between parental feeding practices at age 7–8 y and measures of adiposity at age 8–9 y were attenuated. Conclusions Observed relations between various parental feeding practices and later adiposity are mitigated by inclusion of the baseline adiposity measure. This finding lends support to the theory of reverse causation, whereby the child's size may influence parental choice of specific feeding practices rather than the child's subsequent weight status being a consequence of these feeding practices.

scholarly journals Maternal perception, concern and dissatisfaction with child weight and their association with feeding practices in the Generation XXI birth cohort

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-28
Author(s):  
Alexandra Costa ◽  
Marion Hetherington ◽  
Andreia Oliveira
Keyword(s):  
Birth Cohort ◽  
Weight Status ◽  
Feeding Practices ◽  
Linear Regression Models ◽  
Child Feeding ◽  
Control Scale ◽  
Actual Weight ◽  
Maternal Perception ◽  
Child Weight ◽  
Child Feeding Questionnaire

Abstract What a mother thinks about her child’s weight status, perceiving healthy or overweight might influence concern about child weight and in turn what and how she feeds her child. We examined the association between maternal perception, concern and dissatisfaction with child weight alongside feeding practices. Participants were from the Generation XXI birth cohort (n=3233). A validated version of the Child Feeding Questionnaire and the Overt/Covert Control scale were used. Mothers self-reported perception, level of concern and dissatisfaction with child weight using a Likert scale. Associations were evaluated cross-sectionally at ages 4 and 7 years by linear regression models (β̂ coefficients and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) with Bonferroni correction). Perceived underweight was associated with practices promoting food intake, such as higher pressure to eat at ages 4 and 7 years (β̂=0.229;95%CI:0.059,0.398 and β̂=0.190;95%CI:0.005,0.376, respectively) and lower restriction at age 4 (β̂=-0.175;95%CI:-0.0310,-0.039). At age 7, perceived overweight was associated with higher covert control (β̂=0.203;95%CI:0.029,0.376). Mothers who were concerned about child weight reported higher restriction (β̂=0.226;95%CI:0.142,0.310 at 4y and β̂=0.261;95%CI:0.169,0.353 at 7y) and covert control (β̂=0.183;95%CI:0.083,0.282 at 4y and β̂=0.171;95%CI:0.073,0.269 at 7y). Maternal desire for a heavier child was associated with higher pressure to eat at both ages (β̂=0.285;95%CI:0.163,0.406 at 4y and β̂=0.393;95%CI:0.266,0.520 at 7y), while the desire for a thinner child was related to higher covert control at 7 years of age (β̂=0.158; 95%CI:0.001,0.316). Maternal perceptions and concern for child weight status are associated with feeding practices independently of actual weight status.

scholarly journals Evidence for gene-environment correlation in child feeding: Links between common genetic variation for BMI in children and parental feeding practices

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saskia Selzam ◽  
Tom A. McAdams ◽  
Jonathan R. I. Coleman ◽  
Susan Carnell ◽  
Paul F. O’Reilly ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Intake ◽  
Genetic Correlations ◽  
Feeding Practices ◽  
Child Feeding ◽  
Parental Feeding Practices ◽  
Parental Feeding ◽  
Gene Environment ◽  
Genome Wide ◽  
Polygenic Scores ◽  
Child Bmi

AbstractThe parental feeding practices (PFPs) of excessive restriction of food intake (‘restriction’) and pressure to increase food consumption (‘pressure’) have been argued to causally influence child weight in opposite directions (high restriction causing overweight; high pressure causing underweight). However child weight could also ‘elicit’ PFPs. A novel approach is to investigate gene-environment correlation between child genetic influences on BMI and PFPs. Genome-wide polygenic scores (GPS) combining BMI-associated variants were created for 10,346 children (including 3,320 DZ twin pairs) from the Twins Early Development Study using results from an independent genome-wide association study meta-analysis. Parental ‘restriction’ and ‘pressure’ were assessed using the Child Feeding Questionnaire. Child BMI standard deviation scores (BMI-SDS) were calculated from children’s height and weight at age 10. Linear regression and fixed family effect models were used to test between-(n=4,445 individuals) and within-family (n=2,164 DZ pairs) associations between the GPS and PFPs. In addition, we performed multivariate twin analyses (n=4,375 twin pairs) to estimate the heritabilities of PFPs and the genetic correlations between BMI-SDS and PFPs. The GPS was correlated with BMI-SDS (β=0.20, p=2.41×10-38). Consistent with the gene-environment correlation hypothesis, child BMI GPS was positively associated with ‘restriction’ (β=0.05, p=4.19×10-4), and negatively associated with ‘pressure’ (β=-0.08, p=2.70×10-7). These results remained consistent after controlling for parental BMI, and after controlling for overall family contributions (within-family analyses). Heritabilities for ‘restriction’ (43% [40-47%]) and ‘pressure’ (54% [50-59%]) were moderate-to-high. Twin-based genetic correlations were moderate and positive between BMI-SDS and ‘restriction’ (rA=0.28 [0.23-0.32]), and substantial and negative between BMI-SDS and ‘pressure’ (rA=-0.48 [-0.52 --0.44]. Results suggest that the degree to which parents limit or encourage children’s food intake is partly influenced by children’s genetic predispositions to higher or lower BMI. These findings point to an evocative gene-environment correlation in which heritable characteristics in the child elicit parental feeding behaviour.Author SummaryIt is widely believed that parents influence their child’s BMI via certain feeding practices. For example, rigid restriction has been argued to cause overweight, and pressuring to eat to cause underweight. However, recent longitudinal research has not supported this model. An alternative hypothesis is that child BMI, which has a strong genetic basis, evokes parental feeding practices (‘gene-environment correlation’). To test this, we applied two genetic methods in a large sample of 10-year-old children from the Twins Early Development Study: a polygenic score analysis (DNA-based score of common genetic variants robustly associated with BMI in genome-wide meta-analyses), and a twin analysis (comparing resemblance between identical and non-identical twin pairs). Polygenic scores correlated positively with parental restriction of food intake (‘restriction’; β=0.05, p=4.19×10-4), and negatively with parental pressure to increase food intake (‘pressure’; β=-0.08, p=2.70×10-7). Associations were unchanged after controlling for all genetic and environmental effects shared within families. Results from twin analyses were consistent. ‘Restriction’ (43%) and ‘pressure’ (54%) were substantially heritable, and a positive genetic correlation between child BMI and ‘restriction’ (rA=0.28), and negative genetic correlation between child BMI and ‘pressure’ (rA=-0.48) emerged. These findings challenge the prevailing view that parental behaviours are the sole cause of child BMI by supporting an alternate hypothesis that child BMI also causes parental feeding behaviour.

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