Diet and Exercise in Parenthood: A Social Control Perspective

Abstract

Previous work on social control—the direct and indirect regulation of an individual’s health behaviors by others—suggests that parent–child relationships promote healthy diet and exercise. Yet parenthood is associated with less healthy diet and exercise patterns. The authors investigated this paradox by examining social control processes in 40 in-depth interviews with mothers and fathers. They found that parenthood involves social control processes that both promote and compromise healthy behavior, contributing to contradictory perceived effects of parenthood on health behavior. Moreover, the dynamics of social control appear to unfold in different ways for mothers and fathers and depend on the child’s gender and life stage, suggesting that gender and age dyads are central to understanding the seemingly contradictory consequences of parenthood at the population level. These articulations of gendered social control processes provide new insight into the consequences of the gendered organization of parenthood for diet and exercise.

Parent–Child Relationships and Parent Psychological Distress

“…Fathers who have high dissatisfaction may experience qualitatively different, perhaps less invested, relationships with their children and therefore are not affected by this high level of dissatisfaction. This may be a consequence of the structure of fatherhood and motherhood, wherein fathers are less attached to children than mothers later in life, and thus their dissatisfaction has little role in their own well-being (Reczek, Thomeer, Lodge, Umberson, & Underhill, 2014). …”

Early parenthood as a link between childhood disadvantage and adult heart problems: A gender-based approach

“…Major life events, such as having a child, can trigger broader role transitions that increase exposure to chronic stressors over the life course. Women may thus be more likely than men to adopt stress-soothing but self-damaging lifestyle behaviors, such as consuming more unhealthy foods and being inactive, in response to parenting stress (Nomaguchi & Bianchi, 2004; Reczek, 2014), while men are more likely to cope their stress via alcohol use (Esper & Furtado, 2013). …”

“…For both men and women, early parenthood is associated with school disengagement and dropping out of school, which restrict occupational opportunities (Fletcher & Wolfe, 2009). Individuals confronting parenting-related stress may engage in less healthy practices, such as poor or irregular diet and insufficient exercise (Nomaguchi & Bianchi, 2004; Reczek, 2014), both known to be associated with compromised heart health in later life. Teen motherhood, in fact, is associated with welfare dependency and less prestigious occupations in young adulthood as well as poor mental and physical health outcomes in midlife (Hardy et al, 2009; Henretta, 2007).…”

The transition to fatherhood and the health of men

“…Parenthood typically entails a reconfiguration of social networks, with the addition of a key tie with the child, changes in friendship patterns, and new goals and constraints. These changes increase the social regulation of health-related behaviors through external influences and the internalization of norms (Umberson 1987;Reczek et al 2014). From this perspective, fatherhood provides a source of meaning and purpose that protects individuals from self-harming behavior (Durkheim 1951:258;Umberson 1987).…”

“…Reduced opportunities for physical exercise due to parenting demands may contribute to weight gain (Nomaguchi and Bianchi 2004;Palkovitz 2002). Indeed, one qualitative study concludes that the loss of social opportunities to exercisesuch as playing sports -is "a main consequence" of fatherhood (Reczek et al 2014). Children's dietary preferences may also influence parents: compared to adults living without children, those living with children consume more processed, high-fat, and high-sugar foodsparticularly foods typically desired by children (Laroche, Hofer, and Davis 2007).…”