Search Results (10)

Background: Compared to the general population, individuals with special needs tend to have worse oral health, potentially diminishing their quality of life. This study aimed to evaluate the perception of parents and caregivers regarding the effect of oral health on the quality of life of individuals with special needs who received dental treatment under general anaesthesia, as well as the impact on their and their families’ quality of life. Materials and methods: This cross-sectional study involved participants with special needs who had undergone a dental treatment under general anaesthesia. Before the intervention, an oral examination was conducted to count the number of teeth affected by caries. Parents or caregivers filled out a specially designed questionnaire that included sociodemographic information, details about the children’s oral hygiene and dietary habits, and questionnaires on the impact of their child’s oral health on their quality of life (P-CPQ) and the influence of the oral health of children with psychophysical difficulties on the family (FIS). The data collected were analysed both descriptively and using the chi-square test, Fisher’s exact test, Kruskal–Wallis test, and Spearman’s correlation analysis. The level of significance was set at p ≤ 0.05. Results: This study involved 42 children (24 females and 18 males) with an average age of 21.14 ± 8.34 years. The average number of carious teeth per participant was 9.74 ± 5.63. About 66% of respondents reported that their children performed oral hygiene with their help, while 9.5% of them did not do so at all. Individuals with a higher number of caries had statistically significantly higher scores on the emotional well-being (p = 0.004) and social well-being (p = 0.033) subscales of P-CPQ, as well as on the parental emotions subscale of FIS (p = 0.020). Also, there was a difference in the number of carious teeth in participants due to unhealthy habits (drinking sweetened beverages, p = 0.030) and due to comforting with food (p = 0.004). Conclusion: The increase in the number of carious teeth in individuals with special needs has been associated with the quality of life of their families. To address this, it is crucial to promote the prevention of oral health issues by educating individuals with special needs and their caregivers on proper oral hygiene techniques and diets tailored to their specific requirements. Full article

(1) Background: Sub-optimal feeding practices and dietary intakes in childhood are associated with poor health outcomes in adulthood. This mixed methods study aims to profile feeding practices, parent perceptions, and dietary diversity in a sample of children aged 0–5 years (n = 29) from Western Sydney, Australia. (2) Methods: In 2019, semi-structured interviews were conducted with parents, exploring their child’s feeding practices. An online quantitative survey was used to assess children’s feeding history. Nutrient intakes and dietary diversity scores were assessed using an online 24-h dietary recall. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics and one-way ANOVA, while qualitative data were analysed using inductive thematic analysis. (3) Results: The analysis showed that 27.6% of children were exclusively breastfed until 6 months of age and that 62.1% of children were introduced to solids before 6 months. Over 60% of children achieved minimum dietary diversity. The thematic analysis identified four themes, including mothers’ feeding choices, mothers’ perceptions of their children’s diet, influences on feeding choices, and mothers’ personal experiences. (4) Conclusions: The feeding history of over half the children in this sample indicated non-compliance with Australian and WHO infant feeding guidelines. The thematic analysis revealed various possible influences on parent feeding choices that can be used to inform targeted support. Full article

The aim of this cross-sectional study was to investigate whether parental views on child feeding and its impact on health differ between those parents whose self-perception was that they followed a healthy diet to those who do not. Furthermore, differences in the child’s diet quality and weight were compared between the groups. Parents of 2−6-year-old children (n = 738), recruited from child health clinics throughout Finland, answered semi-structured questionnaires on their views on child feeding and health as well as their child’s diet quality. Participants were divided into two groups based on their self-perceived report of following a healthy diet: health-conscious (HC, n = 396) and non-health-conscious (non-HC, n = 342) parents. HC parents considered health, eating behavior, and nutrient-related factors more often when feeding their child than non-HC parents (<0.001 < p < 0.03). Moreover, they more commonly considered diet to have an important impact on their child’s long-term health than the non-HC parents (<0.001 < p < 0.05). Children of HC parents were more likely to have a good diet quality (p = 0.01) and lower BMI-SDS values (p = 0.015) than those of non-HC parents. Parental health consciousness was linked with better diet quality and healthier weight in their children. This information may be useful in the regular clinical monitoring of children’s health. Full article

A healthy diet in early childhood is an important contributor to ensuring lifelong health and in reducing risk for obesity. The child care environment is critical to supporting nutrition as a majority of young children less than 5 years of age are enrolled in out-of-home care. In order to better understand barriers to implementing and integrating nutrition best practices, we conduced focus groups with child care providers (n = 25) in Illinois. Providers from low-income communities, rural communities, and communities of color were prioritized. Focus group participants reported several challenges including the high cost of nutritious food, picky eating, and their perception that parents did not set good examples at home. Many providers identified the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) as a critical resource in helping them implement best practices. Providers discussed needing and wanting more training, more money for food, and more parental support. These results indicate support for additional resources and sustained training and technical assistance to address perceived challenges. The evidence of the importance of CACFP in helping providers engage in nutrition best practices indicates support for expansion and strengthening of the program. Full article

Diet and food choices significantly impact teeth, including enamel quality and development of dental caries. However, studies focusing on diet and its relation to oral care in Latinx children with and without Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) have been minimally addressed in research. This qualitative study used an inclusive visual methodology to explore what Latinx caregivers learned about their child’s diet preferences and food routines in relation to their oral health. As a secondary aim, the study sought to explore whether notable differences in diet emerged between Latinx children with and without ASD. Participants were 32 Latinx caregivers from 18 families with children with and without Autism (n = 8 with a typically developing child and n = 10 with a child with ASD) who completed a food journal activity and photo elicitation interview. Interviews were thematically coded for themes pertaining to parents’ perceptions of their child’s diet and oral health. Findings of this study indicate that the process of taking photos helped Latinx caregivers to better situate the barriers and behaviors influencing everyday food routines in their children within the context of relating to their overall oral health. Via their active participation in the research process, parents were empowered to note strategies they could employ that would directly impact their child’s oral health outcomes, such as reducing juice intake and monitoring sugar consumption. Therefore, visual research methodologies are an important strategy for researchers to consider in order to empower participants to be part of the research process and part of the outcomes, and to offer better understanding of the lived experience of populations underrepresented in the literature, such as Latinx children with and without ASD and their families. Full article

Adults and children in Canada are not meeting physical activity guidelines nor consuming sufficient nutrient-rich foods. High engagement in these unhealthy behaviours can lead to obesity and its associated diseases. Parent-child interventions aimed at obesity prevention/treatment have assisted families with making positive changes to their nutrition and physical activity behaviours. Given that the home environment shapes early health behaviours, it is important to target both parents and children when addressing diet and physical activity. One method that has been shown to improve health outcomes is co-active coaching. The current study explored the impact of a three-month co-active coaching and/or health education intervention on the dietary intake and physical activity behaviours of parents with overweight/obesity and their children (ages 2.5–10; of any weight). Body composition (i.e., body mass index [BMI] and waist circumference), changes in parental motivation with respect to physical activity and dietary behaviours, and parental perceptions of program improvements were collected. A concurrent mixed methods study comprised of a randomized controlled trial and a descriptive qualitative design was utilized. Fifty parent-child dyads were recruited and randomly assigned to the control (n = 25) or intervention (n = 25) group. Assessments were completed at baseline, mid-intervention (six weeks), post-intervention (three months), and six-month follow-up. A linear mixed effects model was utilized for quantitative analysis. Inductive content analysis was used to extract themes from parent interviews. No significant results were observed over time for the dependent measures. Parents in both control and intervention groups reported varied program experiences, including developing changes in perspective, increased awareness of habits, and heightened accountability for making positive changes in themselves, and consequently, their families. Parents also shared barriers they faced when implementing changes (e.g., time, weather, stress). Qualitatively, both groups reported benefitting from this program, with the intervention group describing salient benefits from engaging in coaching. This research expands on the utility of coaching as a method for behaviour change, when compared to education only, in parents with overweight/obesity and their children. Full article

This study aims to examine children’s fruit, vegetable, and added sugar consumption relative to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the American Heart Association’s recommendations, as well as to compare children’s reported consumption with parental perception of the child’s overall diet quality. Data were drawn from 2 independent, cross sectional panels (2009–10 and 2014–15) of the New Jersey Child Health Study. The analytical sample included 2229 households located in five New Jersey cities. Daily consumption of fruit (cups), vegetables (cups), and added sugars (teaspoons) for all children (3–18 years old) were based on parent reports. Multivariate linear regression analyses estimated children’s adjusted fruit, vegetable, and added sugar consumption across parents’ perception categories (Disagree; Somewhat Agree; and Strongly Agree that their child eats healthy). Although only a small proportion of children meet recommendations, the majority of parents strongly agreed that their child ate healthy. Nonetheless, significant differences, in the expected direction, were observed in vegetable and fruit consumption (but not sugar) across parental perceptional categories for most age/sex groups. Dietary interventions tailored to parents should include specific quantity and serving-size information for fruit and vegetable recommendations, based on their child’s age/sex, and highlight sources of added sugar and their sugar content. Full article

One in five Australian pre-schoolers are overweight or obese, meaning the first years of life are vital for obesity primary prevention. Parent child feeding practices impact on children’s dietary intake, which in turn impacts on their weight status. Parents’ child feeding beliefs are heavily influenced by parenting peers. The aim of this cohort study is to evaluate the impact of the Parents in Child Nutrition Informing Community (PICNIC) study on parents feeding practices and diet quality. The secondary outcomes are the perceptions of trained peer educators and education recipients based on their involvement in PICNIC. One hundred parents with a child aged 0–2 years at time of recruitment will participate in peer educator training, then disseminate nutrition and child feeding content to other parents over an intervention period of 12 months, supported by project-specific, evidence-based social media pages and website. An additional 100 new parents, recruited by peer educators, will participate in the study as nutrition education recipients. Both peer educators and education recipients will complete quantitative child feeding surveys before and during the 12 month intervention and a dietary intake survey at a time point 12 months post intervention. Following the intervention, 30 education recipients will be asked to participate in semi-structured phone interviews about their experiences with PICNIC. Peer educators will contribute as co-researchers and active participants in the evolution of the PICNIC model. This study will contribute to enhanced understanding of contemporary health literacy strategies for communicating nutrition and feeding messages to new parents and the impact of these strategies on parents feeding practices and children’s dietary intake in a community setting. Full article

Weight loss practices and frequency among children and adolescents can impact overall diet quality. We used cross-sectional U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data (NHANES) 2011–2012 from 1303 children and adolescents (8–15 years) to examine associations between frequency of trying to lose weight (never vs. sometimes/a lot) and sociodemographic characteristics, self-perception of weight, and dietary intake. A greater frequency of trying to lose weight was reported by participants with overweight/obesity, those from households with lower annual income and those who perceived they were overweight or obese compared to their counterparts. A high proportion of participants with overweight and obesity considered themselves to be “about the right weight” (76.7 and 42.8%, respectively). Intake data based on one 24-h dietary recall were examined using multivariable regression models adjusted for child and parent/family characteristics. In adjusted analyses, energy and total fat intakes were lower among those trying to lose weight compared to those never trying to lose weight. Intakes of cholesterol, sodium, and refined grains were not different by frequency of trying to lose weight (all p = 0.059–0.074). Weight loss efforts may be related to better nutritional profiles for some children and adolescents. Full article

Introduction: Early childhood obesity in China has become a pressing public health concern. A substantial barrier to healthy weight management is poor parental recognition of child overweight. This study examined the relationship between caregiver perceptions of child weight and dietary practices. Methods: A total of 364 children between 2 and 6 years old from six urban preschools in Changsha (China) were included in a cross-sectional study. Information on household demographics, health behaviors, and caregiver attitudes was collected through a self-administered caregiver questionnaire. Chi-squared tests, t-tests, and multivariable logistic regression analysis were used to determine the relationship between caregiver perceptions, dietary behaviors, and child weight status. Results: Over 60% of caregivers with overweight/obese children underestimated their children’s weight status. These caregivers were less likely to worry about weight and restrict their children’s dietary intakes. Children of caregivers who incorrectly classified their weights were also more likely to have a poor appetite. Caregivers of male children and those from families with incomes between 7000 and 11,000 Ren Min Bi (RMB) were more likely to underestimate weight compared to caregivers with daughters and those from higher income households. Conclusions: Although accurate weight perception may be important for motivating healthy behavioral changes, it may also lead to greater restriction of children’s diets, which has been linked to long-term weight gain. Interventions to improve awareness of child overweight should be coupled with efforts that teach caregivers about healthy weight management strategies. Full article