New data from the American National Health and Nutrition
Examination Survey showed that 8.1 percent of infants (0-2 years) had high
birth weight for length. Even more alarming, in 2012 more than one third of
children were overweight or obese. The prevalence of overweight and obesity in
children has become a significant public health concern. A recent review looked
at the effectiveness of parent involvement and application of behavior change
techniques in weight control interventions.
A cross-sectional study was conducted in five primary
schools in Gao Hand Town, Shanghai. In the study, students were broken up into
four classes depending on criteria:
I.Both father and mother had normal BMI
II. Father overweight, mother normal weight
III. Father normal weight, mother overweight
IV. Both father and mother overweight
Results showed that the total prevalence of overweight
children in one school was 27.2 percent,16 percent higher in boys than girls, and
also 30.8 percent higher in fathers than mothers. Both parental body weight
statuses were closely related to whether children were overweight or healthy. When both parents were overweight, the
prevalence of overweight children was even higher than when compared with
children with one overweight parent.
There are a number of potential explanations relating
parental body weight and overweight children. One factor may be low familial
socioeconomic status and reduced levels of parental education. Parental
obesity-related behaviors (physical inactivity, screen time, sugar-sweetened
beverages, sleep duration and fast food) may also play a role by affecting confidence
to support behavioral changes in their children. Finally, altered family
structure can impact prevalence: children without siblings are at an increased
risk of being overweight than those with siblings.
Bottom Line: Children are likely to adopt both healthy and
unhealthy behaviors from their parents. Parents can serve as role models for
their children by eating healthy foods and being physically active. Encouraging kids to join sports or active
hobbies, limiting screen time and offering nutritious foods are a few of the
ways parents can promote healthy habits at home.
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