Background Food parenting practices have been associated with children's eating behaviors, but analyses exploring the bidirectional effects are limited. Objectives We aimed to examine the bidirectional relations between food parenting practices and the eating behavior of children from 4 to 7 y old. Methods Participants are from the Generation XXI birth cohort (Portugal) assessed at both 4 and 7 y of age (n = 3698 singletons). A validated version of the Child Feeding Questionnaire and the overt/covert control scale were used. Three patterns of food parenting practices (Perceived Monitoring, Restriction, and Pressure to eat) were studied. Perception of children's eating behaviors (eating large amounts of food, eating very slowly, and food refusal) was reported by parents (measured using dichotomous questions). Cross-lagged analyses were performed to evaluate the direction of the associations (parenting practices at 4 y to behaviors at 7 y and the reverse). Results Eating large amounts of food was unidirectionally associated with higher Restriction 3 y later (βstandardized = 0.047; 95% CI: 0.019, 0.075). Apart from Restriction, all associations had a bidirectional effect of similar magnitude. Eating large amounts of food and food refusal at age 4 influenced food parenting, such as Perceived Monitoring and Pressure to eat at age 7, but these practices were prospectively linked to these eating behaviors too (e.g., βstandardized = 0.033; 95% CI: 0.022, 0.064 for food refusal at age 4 and Pressure to eat at age 7, and βstandardized = 0.060; 95% CI: 0.034, 0.086, in the reverse direction). Parenting practices and children's eating behaviors showed significant moderate tracking (standardized path coefficients from 0.24 to 0.49). Conclusions Eating large amounts of food, eating slowly, and food refusal can influence parents to adopt certain food parenting practices, but these practices also influence children's behaviors after a few years. This reciprocal relation should be considered in future research. Parents should be advised to use food parenting practices associated with healthier eating behaviors.

Aim To assess the association of food neophobia (FN) with food preferences, dietary intake and dietary quality. Methods A cross‐sectional study was conducted in a non‐probabilistic sample of 229 Portuguese adults, aged 18 to 84 years. FN was measured with the FN Scale. Dietary intake over the previous 12 months was assessed by a validated semi‐quantitative food frequency questionnaire. We defined a dietary pattern the Healthy Diet Indicator, to summarise the effects of overall dietary intake. Generalised linear models were performed to test associations in multivariate analyses (controlled for sex, age and education). Results FN was negatively associated with a general liking for the act of eating (trueβ^0.5em=−2.976,95%CI:−5.324;−0.993) and with reduced preferences for specific foods (fruit and vegetables, some types of meat and fish and traditional Portuguese dishes with blood). Those with higher FN showed a lower consumption of fruits and vegetables, but a higher consumption of milk and codfish, a popular Portuguese ingredient. However, FN did not affect the macronutrients and energy intake, as well as sodium, added sugars and fibre intake. Adherence to a healthy dietary pattern was not significantly associated with FN. Conclusions FN was associated with a decreased consumption and preference for specific foods, but it had no impact on a healthy dietary pattern.

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.

The Adult Eating Behavior Questionnaire (AEBQ) is a tool developed in the UK, used in the investigation of appetitive traits in adults and adolescents, and later validated in a number of countries. To date, the validity of the AEBQ has not been tested on Portuguese-speaking popula-tions. The aim of this study was to validate the AEBQ in a sample of Portuguese adolescents. Participants were 4483 13-year-olds enrolled in the population-based cohort study Generation XXI. Appetitive traits were self-reported by adolescents through the AEBQ and parents also reported adolescent eating behaviors. Confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses were conducted. Construct validity was tested through correlations between AEBQ subscales and parent-reported eating behaviors, and linear regressions between AEBQ subscales and adolescent body mass index z-scores were performed. Adequate internal consistency and several associations with parent-reported eating behaviors and measured adolescent body mass index z-scores were found. This study supports the validity of a five-factor AEBQ (Food Responsiveness and Enjoyment of Food; Slowness in Eating; Food Fussiness; Emotional Over- and Undereating) to measure appetitive traits among Portuguese adolescents and provides a convenient and easy-to-use tool to be used in large-scale research.

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