The role of grandparents in childhood obesity in China - evidence from a mixed methods study

International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity

Research

Bai Li¹  Peymané Adab¹  Kar Keung Cheng¹ 

[1] College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, B15 2TT, Birmingham, UK;

关键词: Child care;    Childhood obesity;    Chinese children;    Eating behavior;    Health behavior;    Body mass index;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12966-015-0251-z

 received in 2014-11-21, accepted in 2015-06-19,  发布年份 2015

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundThe current literature on the influences of family environment on childhood obesity is predominantly based on western populations and has focused on the role of parents. This study examined the influence of grandparents on the development of obesity among Chinese primary school aged children.MethodsA mixed methods study was conducted in four socioeconomically distinct primary school communities in two cities of southern China. The qualitative study (17 focus groups and four personal interviews) involved parents, grandparents, school staff, and food retailers in the vicinity of the schools (n = 99) and explored perceived causes of childhood obesity. The cross-sectional study examined the association between children’s objectively measured weight status and reported health behaviours, and the presence and role of grandparents in the household. It included children from three randomly selected third grade (8 to 10 years) classes from each school (n = 497).ResultsGrandparents were commonly perceived to contribute to childhood obesity through inappropriate perception (e.g. fat children are healthy and well cared for), knowledge (e.g. obesity related diseases can only happen in adults; the higher the dietary energy/fat content, the more nutritious the food), and behaviour (e.g. overfeeding and indulging through excusing the children from household chores). Conflicting child care beliefs and practices between grandparents and parents, and between grandparents and school teachers, were felt to undermine efforts to promote healthy behaviours in children. In the cross-sectional study, children who were mainly cared for by their grandparents were more likely to be overweight/obese (adjusted OR = 2.03; 95 % CI = 1.19 to 3.47); and to consume more sugar-added drinks and unhealthy snacks (B = 2.13, 95 % CI = 0.87 to 3.40), than children who were mainly cared for by their parents or other adult. Children who lived with two or more grandparents in the household were more likely to be overweight/obese than children who did not live with any grandparent (adjusted OR = 1.72; 95 % CI = 1.00 to 2.94).ConclusionsInvolvement of grandparents in childcare is an important factor contributing to childhood obesity in China. Future preventive interventions should include strategies that target grandparents.

【 授权许可】

Unknown   
© Li et al. 2015. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.