Purpose: The aim of this study is to evaluate the attitudes of mothers with pre-school children towards child nutrition and to determine the relationship between these attitudes of mothers and the children's body mass index (BMI).
Methods: This descriptive study was conducted with mothers of children aged 4-6 years in kindergartens. The data were collected by using the Mother Descriptive Characteristics Form, Child Descriptive Characteristics Form" and " Mother’s Attitudes Towards the Feeding Process Scale (MATFPS). BMI (kg/m2) of all children was determined.
Results: In the study, MATFPS total mean score of mothers with pre-school children was 60.09±17.60, and mothers' attitudes towards the feeding process were at a good level. MATFPS mean score of mothers of children with a birth weight of 1000-2000 grams was statistically significantly higher than those with a birth weight of 2001-3000, 3001-4000 and 4001-5000 grams (p<0.01). According to the BMI of the children of the mothers participating in the study, 19.4% were underweight, 10.0% were at underweight risk, 47.6% were healthy, 10.5% were slightly obese, and 12.0% were obese; the difference between the mean scores of the mothers and the BMIs of the children is highly significant (p<0.001).
Conclusion: Mothers' attitudes towards the feeding process are at a good level. However, the low birth weight causes the negative attitudes in mothers towards the feeding process. Again, BMI which is an indicator of growth and development in children, negatively affects maternal attitudes in the feeding process. Pediatric nurses can provide counseling to mothers in order to develop positive attitudes.
We would like to thank all participating nursing who took the time to complete the questionnaires and made this study possible.
References
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Schlottmann H, Broome M, Herbst R, et al. Nurse-led telephone follow-up to improve parent promotion of healthy behaviors in young children with motivational interviewing techniques. J Pediatr Health Care. 2019;33:545-54. DOI: 10.1016/j.pedhc.2019.02.003
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Melo P, Sousa MI, Dimande MM, et al. Descriptive study of children's nutritional status and identification of community-level nursing diagnoses in a school community in Africa. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020;17:6108. DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17176108
Folayan MO, El Tantawi M, Oginni AB, et al. Malnutrition, enamel defects, and early childhood caries in preschool children in a sub-urban Nigeria population. PLoS One. 2020;15:e0232998. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0232998
Gebru NW, Gebreyesus SH, Yirgu R, et al. The relationship between caregivers' feeding practices and children's eating behaviours among preschool children in Ethiopia. Appetite. 2021;157:104992. DOI: 10.1016/j.appet.2020.104992
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Piro SS and Ahmed HM. Impacts of antenatal nursing interventions on mothers' breastfeeding self-efficacy: an experimental study. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2020;20:19. DOI: 10.1186/s12884-019-2701-0
Estrem HH, Pados BF, Thoyre S, et al. Concept of pediatric feeding problems from the parent perspective. MCN Am J Matern Child Nurs. 2016;41:212-20. DOI: 10.1097/NMC.0000000000000249
Xu X, Parker D, Ferguson C, et al. Where is the nurse in nutritional care? Contemp Nurse. 2017;53:267-70. DOI: 10.1080/10376178.2017.1370782
Schlottmann H, Broome M, Herbst R, et al. Nurse-led telephone follow-up to improve parent promotion of healthy behaviors in young children with motivational interviewing techniques. J Pediatr Health Care. 2019;33:545-54. DOI: 10.1016/j.pedhc.2019.02.003
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Al Yazeedi B, Berry DC, Crandell J, et al. Family influence on children's nutrition and physical activity patterns in Oman. J Pediatr Nurs. 2021;56:e42-e48. DOI: 10.1016/j.pedn.2020.07.012
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Nujić D, Karšić M, Milas V, et al. Body mass index trend as a new parameter for evaluating children's nutritional status. Public Health. 2019;173:138-45. DOI: 10.1016/j.puhe.2019.04.014
Estay K, Kurzer A, Guinard JX. Mothers' perceptions and attitudes towards children's vegetable consumption-a qualitative, cross-cultural study of Chilean, Chinese and American mothers living in Northern California. Foods. 2021;10:519. DOI: 10.3390/foods10030519
Chen JL, Guo J, Esquivel JH, et al. Like mother, like child: the influences of maternal attitudes and behaviors on weight-related health behaviors in their children. J Transcult Nurs. 2018;29:523-31. DOI: 10.1177/1043659617736883
Bergmeier H, Skouteris H, Horwood S, et al. Associations between child temperament, maternal feeding practices and child body mass index during the preschool years: a systematic review of the literature. Obes Rev. 2014;15:9-18. DOI: 10.1111/obr.12066
Parrino C, Vinciguerra F, La Spina N, et al. Influence of early-life and parental factors on childhood overweight and obesity. J Endocrinol Invest. 2016;39:1315-21. DOI: 10.1007/s40618-016-0501-1
Leme AC, Muszynski D, Mirotta JA, et al. Diet quality of Canadian preschool children: associations with socio-demographic characteristics. Can J Diet Pract Res. 2021;82:131-5. DOI: 10.3148/cjdpr-2021-009
Shinsugi C, Tani Y, Kurotani K, et al. Change in growth and diet quality among preschool children in Tokyo, Japan. Nutrients. 2020;12:1290. DOI: 10.3390/nu12051290
Rahmaty Z, Johantgen ME, Storr CL, et al. Patterns of caregivers' feeding practices and associated characteristics among preschool-age children in the United States. Appetite. 2022;168:105769. DOI:10.1016/j.appet.2021.105769
Schlottmann H, Broome M, Herbst R, et al. Nurse-led telephone follow-up to improve parent promotion of healthy behaviors in young children with motivational interviewing techniques. J Pediatr Health Care. 2019;33:545-54. DOI: 10.1016/j.pedhc.2019.02.003
Almeida C, Azevedo J, Gregório MJ, et al. Parental practices, preferences, skills and attitudes on food consumption of pre-school children: Results from the nutriscience project. PloS One. 2021;16:e0251620. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0251620
Melo P, Sousa MI, Dimande MM, et al. Descriptive study of children's nutritional status and identification of community-level nursing diagnoses in a school community in Africa. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020;17:6108. DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17176108
Folayan MO, El Tantawi M, Oginni AB, et al. Malnutrition, enamel defects, and early childhood caries in preschool children in a sub-urban Nigeria population. PLoS One. 2020;15:e0232998. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0232998
Gebru NW, Gebreyesus SH, Yirgu R, et al. The relationship between caregivers' feeding practices and children's eating behaviours among preschool children in Ethiopia. Appetite. 2021;157:104992. DOI: 10.1016/j.appet.2020.104992
Ansuya Nayak BS, Unnikrishnan B, George A, et al. Risk factors for malnutrition among preschool children in rural Karnataka: a case-control study. BMC Public Health. 2018;18:283. DOI: 10.1186/s12889-018-5124-3
Piro SS and Ahmed HM. Impacts of antenatal nursing interventions on mothers' breastfeeding self-efficacy: an experimental study. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2020;20:19. DOI: 10.1186/s12884-019-2701-0
Estrem HH, Pados BF, Thoyre S, et al. Concept of pediatric feeding problems from the parent perspective. MCN Am J Matern Child Nurs. 2016;41:212-20. DOI: 10.1097/NMC.0000000000000249
Xu X, Parker D, Ferguson C, et al. Where is the nurse in nutritional care? Contemp Nurse. 2017;53:267-70. DOI: 10.1080/10376178.2017.1370782
Schlottmann H, Broome M, Herbst R, et al. Nurse-led telephone follow-up to improve parent promotion of healthy behaviors in young children with motivational interviewing techniques. J Pediatr Health Care. 2019;33:545-54. DOI: 10.1016/j.pedhc.2019.02.003
Tedik SE. Healthy life and role of nursing in the control of body weight. Turk J Diab Obes. 2017;2:54-62. DOI: 10.25048/tjdo.2017.9
Al Yazeedi B, Berry DC, Crandell J, et al. Family influence on children's nutrition and physical activity patterns in Oman. J Pediatr Nurs. 2021;56:e42-e48. DOI: 10.1016/j.pedn.2020.07.012
Cole NC, Musaad SM, Lee SY, et al. Home feeding environment and picky eating behavior in preschool-aged children: A prospective analysis. Eat Behav. 2018;30:76-82. DOI: 10.1016/j.eatbeh.2018.06.003
Sanlier N, Ulusoy HG, Kocabaş S, et al. Mediterranean diet adherence among preschoolers and its association with parents' beliefs, attitudes, and practices. Ecol Food Nutr. 2021;60:225-43. DOI: 10.1080/03670244.2020.1833874
Kim SY and Cha SM. Evaluation of dietary behaviors of preschool children in Seoul and Gyeonggi-do associated with the level of parents' health consciousness: using nutrition quotient for preschoolers (NQ-P). Nutr Res and Pract. 2021;15:248-65. DOI: 10.4162/nrp.2021.15.2.248
Broilo MC, Vitolo MR, Stenzel LM, et al. Mothers’ perceptions of their own diets and the diets of their children at 2–3 years of age. Psicol Refl Crít. 2017;30:1-11. DOI: 10.1186/s41155-017-0067-7
Goodman LC, Roberts LT, Musher-Eizenman DR. Mindful feeding: A pathway between parenting style and child eating behaviors. Eat Behav. 2020;36:101335. DOI: 10.1016/j.eatbeh.2019.101335
Freitas FR, Moraes DEB, Warkentin S, et al. Maternal restrictive feeding practices for child weight control and associated characteristics. J Pediatr (Rio J). 2019;95:201-8. DOI: 10.1016/j.jped.2017.12.009
Warkentin S, Mais LA, Latorre MDRDO, et al. Relationships between parent feeding behaviors and parent and child characteristics in Brazilian preschoolers: a cross-sectional study. BMC Public Health. 2018;18:704. DOI: 10.1186/s12889-018-5593-4
Bradwisch SA, Smith EM, Mooney C, et al. Obesity in children and adolescents: An overview. Nursing. 2020;50:60-6. DOI: 10.1097/01.NURSE.0000718908.20119.01
Dilsiz H and Dağ I. Mother’s attitudes towards the feeding process scale: development, validity and reliability study. Turkish J Pediatric Disease. 2018;14:7-15. DOI: 10.12956/tjpd.2018.380
World Health Organization. Obesity, 2020. Available at: https://www.who.int/newsroom/fact-sheets/detail/obesity-and-overweight.
Nujić D, Karšić M, Milas V, et al. Body mass index trend as a new parameter for evaluating children's nutritional status. Public Health. 2019;173:138-45. DOI: 10.1016/j.puhe.2019.04.014
Estay K, Kurzer A, Guinard JX. Mothers' perceptions and attitudes towards children's vegetable consumption-a qualitative, cross-cultural study of Chilean, Chinese and American mothers living in Northern California. Foods. 2021;10:519. DOI: 10.3390/foods10030519
Chen JL, Guo J, Esquivel JH, et al. Like mother, like child: the influences of maternal attitudes and behaviors on weight-related health behaviors in their children. J Transcult Nurs. 2018;29:523-31. DOI: 10.1177/1043659617736883
Bergmeier H, Skouteris H, Horwood S, et al. Associations between child temperament, maternal feeding practices and child body mass index during the preschool years: a systematic review of the literature. Obes Rev. 2014;15:9-18. DOI: 10.1111/obr.12066
Parrino C, Vinciguerra F, La Spina N, et al. Influence of early-life and parental factors on childhood overweight and obesity. J Endocrinol Invest. 2016;39:1315-21. DOI: 10.1007/s40618-016-0501-1
Leme AC, Muszynski D, Mirotta JA, et al. Diet quality of Canadian preschool children: associations with socio-demographic characteristics. Can J Diet Pract Res. 2021;82:131-5. DOI: 10.3148/cjdpr-2021-009
Shinsugi C, Tani Y, Kurotani K, et al. Change in growth and diet quality among preschool children in Tokyo, Japan. Nutrients. 2020;12:1290. DOI: 10.3390/nu12051290
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