Engaging Parents to Promote Children’s Nutrition and Health: Providers’ Barriers and Strategies in Head Start and Child Care Centers

Purpose: Using the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics benchmarks as a framework, this study examined childcare providers’ (Head Start [HS], Child and Adult Care Food Program [CACFP] funded, and non-CACFP) perspectives regarding communicating with parents about nutrition to promote children’s health. Design: Qualitative. Setting: State-licensed center-based childcare programs. Participants: Full-time childcare providers (n ¼ 18) caring for children 2 to 5 years old from varying childcare contexts (HS, CACFP funded, and non-CACFP), race, education, and years of experience. Methods: In-person interviews using semi-structured interview protocol until saturation were achieved. Thematic analysis was conducted. Results: Two overarching themes were barriers and strategies to communicate with parents about children’s nutrition. Barriers to communication included—(a) parents are too busy to talk with providers, (b) parents offer unhealthy foods, (c) parents prioritize talking about child food issues over nutrition, (d) providers are unsure of how to communicate about nutrition without offending parents, and (e) providers are concerned if parents are receptive to nutrition education materials. Strategies for communication included—(a) recognize the benefits of communicating with parents about nutrition to support child health, (b) build a partnership with parents through education, (c) leverage policy (federal and state) to communicate positively and avoid conflict, (d) implement center-level practices to reinforce policy, and (e) foster a respectful relationship between providers and parents. Conclusion: Policy and environmental changes were recommended for fostering a respectful relationship and building a bridge between providers and parents to improve communication about children’s nutrition and health

The Relationship Between Physical Activity and Diet and Young Children\u27s Cognitive Development: A Systematic Review

Objective Given the high prevalence of suboptimal nutrition and low activity levels in children, we systematically reviewed the literature on the relationship between physical activity and dietary patterns and cognitive development in early childhood (six months to five years). Methods In February 2016, we conducted two different searches of MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and ERIC. Each search included either physical activity (including gross motor skills) or diet terms, and neurocognitive development outcome terms. Included studies were in English, published since 2005, and of any study design in which the physical activity or diet measure occurred prior to age five. Results For physical activity, twelve studies (5 cross-sectional, 3 longitudinal and 4 experimental) were included. Eleven studies reported evidence suggesting that physical activity or gross motor skills are related to cognition or learning. Both acute bouts and longer term exposures showed benefit. For diet, eight studies were included consisting of secondary analyses from longitudinal cohort studies. A healthier dietary pattern was associated with better cognitive outcomes in all studies, although some of the reported associations were weak and the measures used varied across the studies. Conclusions Physical activity and healthy diets in early childhood are associated with better cognitive outcomes in young children. The paucity of literature and the variability in the type and quality of measures used highlight the need for more rigorous research. Given that the early childhood years are critical for both obesity prevention and neurocognitive development, evidence that the same healthy behaviors could promote both should inform future interventions. Keywords Nutrition; Physical activity; Childhood obesity; Cognitive development; Executive function; Early learnin

‘Let’s Work Together Towards Children’s Nutrition’: Building Bridge Between Child Care Providers and Parents for Promoting Child Health

Objective: To investigate childcare providers’ perspectives for communicating with parents to promote children’s nutrition and health. Design, Setting, and Participants: In-person, semistructured interviews. Licensed center-based child care. Eighteenfull- time childcareproviders caring for children2-5 years old, 67% caring for children who pay with federal subsidy. Outcome Measures and Analysis: Participants were selected using maximum variation purposive sampling. Interviews were conducted until saturation was achieved. NVivo, thematic analysis used to code and identify themes and meta-themes regarding providers\u27 perspectives for parent communication. Results: Two meta-themes emerged from providers’ responses: barriers to communication, and strategies to communication. Barriers to communication include: parents are too busy to talk, parents prioritize food concerns over nutrition, parents allow unhealthy foods, providers are unsure about communicating, and providers weren’t sure parents were receptive to nutrition education materials. Five strategies were identified for communication and building bridges between providers and parents: ecognize the benefits of engaging and educating parents about nutrition to promote health; everage policy to communicate positively and avoid conflict with parents; implement center-level practices to reinforce policy; build partnerships with parents through education; foster a respectful relationship between providers and parents. Conclusions and Implications: Policy and center strategies were identified for fostering a respectful relationship and building bridges between providers and parents to promote child health and nutrition. Funding: Administration for Children and Families Office of Planning and Evaluation Research, Illinois Transdisciplinary Obesity Prevention Program (I-TOPP