Psychosocial correlates of eating behavior in children and adolescents: a review

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Understanding the correlates of dietary intake is necessary in order to effectively promote healthy dietary behavior among children and adolescents. A literature review was conducted on the correlates of the following categories of dietary intake in children and adolescents: Fruit, Juice and Vegetable Consumption, Fat in Diet, Total Energy Intake, Sugar Snacking, Sweetened Beverage Consumption, Dietary Fiber, Other Healthy Dietary Consumption, and Other Less Healthy Dietary Consumption in children and adolescents.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Cross-sectional and prospective studies were identified from PubMed, PsycINFO and PsycArticles by using a combination of search terms. Quantitative research examining determinants of dietary intake among children and adolescents aged 3–18 years were included. The selection and review process yielded information on country, study design, population, instrument used for measuring intake, and quality of research study.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Seventy-seven articles were included. Many potential correlates have been studied among children and adolescents. However, for many hypothesized correlates substantial evidence is lacking due to a dearth of research. The correlates best supported by the literature are: perceived modeling, dietary intentions, norms, liking and preferences. Perceived modeling and dietary intentions have the most consistent and positive associations with eating behavior. Norms, liking, and preferences were also consistently and positively related to eating behavior in children and adolescents. Availability, knowledge, outcome expectations, self-efficacy and social support did not show consistent relationships across dietary outcomes.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This review examined the correlates of various dietary intake; Fruit, Juice and Vegetable Consumption, Fat in Diet, Total Energy Intake, Sugar Snacking, Sweetened Beverage Consumption, Dietary Fiber, Other Healthy Dietary Consumption, and Other Less Healthy Dietary Consumption in cross-sectional and prospective studies for children and adolescents. The correlates most consistently supported by evidence were perceived modeling, dietary intentions, norms, liking and preferences. More prospective studies on the psychosocial determinants of eating behavior using broader theoretical perspectives should be examined in future research.</p

Culturally Relevant Health Education: A Foundation for Building Cultural Competence of Health Professionals

Background: Professionals educating ethnic minority populations should employ a cultural focus during development, training, refinement and implementation stages of an intervention. Purpose: This manuscript posits that the skill of developing a culturally relevant curriculum supports the increase of cultural competence proficiency of professionals, while promoting health equity. Methods: A community-based participatory research-trained staff, recruited 378 families with 2 to 8-year-old children. Eight intergenerational focus groups were conducted at neighborhood facilities. Graduate fellows conducted reviews of literature and health directives to conceptualize the curriculum. Spanish-speaking students and promotoras (community health workers) having participants’ confidence, presented healthy lifestyle information and taught practical skills to each group of 12-16 low-income Latino families from Long Beach, CA. With attention to participants’ preferred language, educational level, cultural beliefs, practices and food preferences, the intervention demonstrates a culturally relevant curriculum. Hands-on activities and motivational interviewing questions enriched the 4-hour intervention delivered in Spanish. Results: Graduate fellows’ cultural competence increased. More than 97% of participants reported sessions beneficial to their families’ health with 84% attending all sessions/assessments. Participants found the content easy to understand and helpful to eat healthier and be more active. Conclusion: Sanos y Fuertes is a model for developing a culturally relevant, family-based healthy lifestyle educational curriculum and building culturally competent health professionals

Primary Outcomes of a Healthy Lifestyle Interventions for Latino Families

Latinos, especially children, are disproportionately affected by obesity. Sanos y Fuertes is a community-based, participatory research project that created a culturally resonant, bilingual, healthy lifestyle intervention for Latinos in California. Results of the program for families are presented. Methods: The sample consisted of 390 Latino families with at least one 2 to 8-year-old child. Confidential, self-report, paper-and-pencil surveys and objective anthropometrics were assessed. Paired sample t-tests evaluated changes between baseline-to-follow-up assessments. Results: A significant decrease was observed in children’s percent body fat, but not in adults. Improvements were found in adult knowledge, frequency of food label use and serving MyPlate portions. Adult frequency of breakfast, fruit, and vegetable intake increased, while frequency of sugary beverage intake decreased. Concomitant increases in parent-reported frequencies of children’s intake of breakfast, fruits, and vegetables were observed along with a less frequent intake of sugary beverage. Conclusion: Sanos y Fuertes is a promising, short-term healthy lifestyle education program which may lower obesity risk among Latino families. Replication in a randomized controlled trial is needed to establish its effectiveness among diverse Latino populations

Anxiety mediates the relationship between sleep onset latency and emotional eating in minority children

This study examined associations between sleep onset latency and emotional eating in a minority sample of children. A cross-sectional school-based study of sleep, psychological constructs, diet and physical activity was conducted in 6 public and private schools in Los Angeles County. An ethnically diverse sample of 356 third through fifth graders completed confidential self-report surveys. Multilevel regression (MLM) analyses were conducted to study associations while controlling for gender, ethnicity, and the random effect of school. Girls made up 57% of the total sample, which was predominantly Latino (42.6%), followed by African Americans (21.6%) and Asians (19.2%). MLM revealed that there were significant associations between sleep onset latency and emotional eating (p=.030), depressive symptomology (p<.0001) and trait anxiety (p<.0001). Sobel's test for mediation showed that trait anxiety (p=.011) but not depressive symptomology (p=.141) was a mediator of the relationship between sleep onset latency and emotional eating. Thereby providing a mechanism through which sleep onset latency is related to emotional eating. These findings suggest that sleep onset latency is associated with increased anxiety, depressive symptoms, and emotional eating. Although causal inferences cannot be drawn from this cross-sectional data, future studies should examine the possibility that problems falling asleep could lead to emotional dysregulation that in turn leads to emotional eating. Emotional eating may be one avenue by which sleep disturbances lead to overweight and obesity