Parental feeding practices and their relation to child eating behavior: Problems for explanation / Prácticas alimentarias parentales y su relación con la conducta alimentaria infantil: Problemas para la explicación

Abstract

Parental feeding practices influence the learning of healthy eating since childhood. But the lack of clear descriptions and inconsistent terminology of such practices hampers the understanding of their influence on such learning. From a selected review of scientific articles that included descriptions of parental feeding practices and relationships with any aspect of children's eating behavior, we analyzed the behavioral descriptions stated in literature during the last decade (2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012)(2013)(2014)(2015)(2016) with the purpose to clarify relations among these and the children's eating behavior. The results were categorized based on the relationships between feeding practices and the challenges in infant feeding behavior such as acceptance of new foods, development of food preferences, and food self-regulation. The results reflect some practices associated with both desirable and undesirable children's eating behavior. Confusion in terminology and lack of consistency in behavioral descriptions of parental feeding practices and explanations of the mechanisms of such practices are still unknown. Some considerations are proposed for future research.Keywords: Parental feeding practices; Child eating behavior; New food intakes; Food preferences; Food self-regulation. ResumenDesde la infancia, las prácticas alimentarias parentales (PAP) influyen en el aprendizaje del comer saludablemente. Sin embargo, la terminología inconsistente y la falta de descripciones claras de las PAP obstaculizan la comprensión de su influencia en dicho aprendizaje. A partir de una revisión selectiva de artículos científicos que incluyeron des- Revista Mexicana de Trastornos AlimentariosMexican Journal of Eating Disorders

Measurement invariance of the comprehensive feeding practices questionnaire in dual-earner parents with adolescent children in Chile

“…These behavioral styles are known as Food Parenting Practices (FPP; Rodríguez Arauz and Ramírez, 2017 ), which are strongly related to the eating habits of parents and the type of food they offer to their children ( Kaar et al, 2016 ). Research has shown that FPP influence eating patterns and body weight of children ( Haszard et al, 2013 ; González-Torres et al, 2018 ; Saltzman et al, 2018 ). Some FPP may have negative consequences even in future generations (e.g., on weight, obesity and associated chronic non-communicable diseases), because the eating habits acquired in childhood and adolescence can be perpetuated and replicated when these children become parents ( Nowicka et al, 2014 ; Corsini et al, 2018 ).…”

“…Some FPP may have negative consequences even in future generations (e.g., on weight, obesity and associated chronic non-communicable diseases), because the eating habits acquired in childhood and adolescence can be perpetuated and replicated when these children become parents ( Nowicka et al, 2014 ; Corsini et al, 2018 ). The inappropriate use of FPP is, in part, because parents do not have sufficient knowledge and are unaware of the changes they must consider in the different stages of their children’s lives ( Castrillón and Giraldo Roldán, 2014 ; González-Torres et al, 2018 ; Russell et al, 2018 ).…”

Prácticas parentales de alimentación, autoeficacia y actitudes maternas con niños/as preescolares sonorenses

“…De acuerdo con el objetivo de la investigación podemos considerar que nuestras variables de estudio tienen poca relación entre sí, las correlaciones obtenidas fueron bajas. Cabe destacar que las relaciones más importantes a pesar de lo bajas fueron las de responsabilidad de los padres con el monitoreo, es decir, los padres que se sienten responsables de la alimentación de sus hijos/as tienden a establecer la práctica de alimentación monitoreo (supervisar y cuantificar lo que come) (González-Torres et al, 2018), pero a su vez tiene asociación con la autoeficacia para prevenir el exceso de peso en los niños.…”

Validation of the Scale on Parental Feeding Behaviors (ECOPAL) for Caregivers of Mexican Children

“…It has been noted that a fundamental step in the search for a means of preventing childhood obesity is the analysis of parental feeding practices [3,4], which are a set of behaviors and actions that parents carry out to influence the eating behavior of their children [5]. This definition can be applied to many behaviors carried out by parents, but there needs to be more clarity about its operationalization and its consequences on child eating behavior [6].…”

“…The results of some studies suggest practices that can be beneficial for the development of healthy eating habits by promoting autonomy, stimulating self-regulation and selfcontrol, such as providing nutritional education, involving children in the selection of foods, diet, motivation, modeling, reasoning, and negotiation, among others [5][6][7]. However, it has been found that parents receive little guidance on how to contribute to the development of their children's feeding autonomy from an early age and how to manage the problems of feeding children, for example, knowing how to face a refusal to consume food [8].…”