An exploratory study of associations between Australian-Indian mothers' use of controlling feeding practices, concerns and perceptions of children's weight and children's picky eating

Food neophobia and picky eating (FNPE) are dietary behaviors that have been frequently reported to coexist in children. Parental concerns about these dietary behaviors may influence the feeding practices employed. In this cross-sectional study, we investigated the bidirectional associations of maternal feeding practices with children’s FNPE behaviors. Using a convenience sampling technique, mothers of 195 healthy children aged 1–7 years were invited to complete a sociodemographic questionnaire, rate their child’s FNPE, and rate the extent to which each feeding practice was employed with the child. Maternal reports indicated that 37.4% (n = 73) of the children exhibited severe FNPE. Multiple linear regression analyses showed positive two-way associations between the “pressure to eat” feeding strategy and FNPE, and negative two-way associations between a healthy home food environment and FNPE. However, maternal practices of teaching and monitoring were not found to be associated with FNPE. Given the bidirectional relationships observed between FNPE and maternal feeding practices, primary health care providers should address the feeding practices used with a child and indicate that coercive feeding practices are counterproductive. Intervention studies targeting mothers of children with FNPE are needed to investigate whether specific maternal practices are more effective than others.

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How do Indian mothers use feeding practices with children?

Journal of Children s Services ◽

10.1108/jcs-02-2016-0004 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 11 (4) ◽

pp. 283-299 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Jyoti Vohra ◽

Pavleen Soni

Keyword(s):

Factor Analysis ◽

Family Income ◽

Feeding Practices ◽

Well Being ◽

Food Marketing ◽

Validity And Reliability ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Content Type ◽

Indian Mothers ◽

The Government

Purpose The undesirable effects of TV advertisements and general parenting responsibility propel mothers to monitor and control the eating habits of children through meal time actions and feeding practices. The purpose of this paper is to identify feeding practices used by Indian mothers through the Comprehensive Feeding Practices Questionnaire (CFPQ) developed by Musher-Eizenman and Holub (2007) and to investigate differences in the use of feeding practices across demographic variables. Design/methodology/approach Using a cross-sectional design, a structured and pre-tested questionnaire was used to collect data from 473 mothers of children aged four to 11 years from Punjab (India). Data were analysed using exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and ANOVA. Findings The present study confirms the validity and reliability of the nine-factor model through CFA with 28 items in the Indian context than original CFPQ. Further, significant differences exist in the responses of mothers for feeding practices followed with children across age and gender of child, mother’s education status and monthly family income. Practical implications Parents may understand the nature of feeding practices to mediate unhealthy food consumption habits of children. The government should formulate codes or regulations to sufficiently monitor food marketing activities directed at children. The food marketing companies should also act responsibly to protect well-being of children. Originality/value This piece of research is important as no such study (to the best of researchers’ knowledge) has already been conducted in India even though dietary patterns of children are transforming tremendously.

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