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The Family Diet Study: a cross‐sectional study into the associations between diet, food habits and body weight status in M alay families
Author(s) -
Yang W. Y.,
Burrows T.,
MacDonaldWicks L.,
Williams L. T.,
Collins C. E.,
Chee W. S. S.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
journal of human nutrition and dietetics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.951
H-Index - 70
eISSN - 1365-277X
pISSN - 0952-3871
DOI - 10.1111/jhn.12356
Subject(s) - medicine , malay , overweight , anthropometry , body mass index , obesity , demography , cross sectional study , childhood obesity , endocrinology , philosophy , linguistics , pathology , sociology
Background Childhood obesity is becoming more common as M alaysia experiences rapid nutrition transition. Current evidence related to parental influences on child dietary intake and body weight status is limited. The present study aimed to report, among M alay families, the prevalence of energy mis‐reporting and dietary relationships within family dyads. Methods The cross‐sectional F amily D iet S tudy ( n = 236) was conducted at five primary schools in central of P eninsular M alaysia. Each family consisted of a Malay child, aged 8–12 years, and their main caregiver(s). Information on socio‐demographics, dietary intake and anthropometry were collected. Correlations and regression analyses were used to assess dietary relationships within family dyads. Results Approximately 29.6% of the children and 75.0% parents were categorised as being overweight or obese. Intakes of nutrients and food groups were below the national recommended targets for majority of children and adults. A large proportion of energy intake mis‐reporters were identified: mothers (55.5%), fathers (40.2%) and children (40.2%). Children's body mass index ( BMI) was positively associated with parental BMI (fathers, r = 0.37; mothers, r = 0.34; P < 0.01). For dietary intakes, moderate‐to‐strong (0.35–0.72) and weak‐to‐moderate (0.16–0.35) correlations were found between mother–father and child–parent dyads, respectively. Multiple regression revealed that maternal percentage energy from fat (β = 0.09, P < 0.01) explained 81% of the variation in children's fat intake. Conclusions Clear parental dietary relationships, especially child–mother dyads, were found. Despite a significant proportion of families with members who were overweight or obese, the majority reported dietary intakes below recommended levels, distorted by energy mis‐reporting. The findings of the present study can inform interventions targeting parent–child relationships to improve family dietary patterns in Malaysia.