Maternal perception of excess weight in children: a survey conducted by paediatricians in the province of Milan.
OBJECTIVE
To establish whether maternal perception of a child's body weight (BW) and food intake is related to the level of maternal education.


METHODS
Height and BW of 569 mother/child couples were measured, and mothers received a questionnaire regarding their perception of their own weight and their child's BW and food intake.


RESULTS
Twenty-nine percent of mothers and 35% of children were overweight or obese. Only 10% of the mothers underestimated their own weight, while 37% overestimated it. In contrast, 28% of mothers underestimated their child's BW, while 9% overestimated it. Higher maternal instruction level was significantly associated to a lower weight class in both mothers and children, and to a correct perception of the child's weight. Fifty-seven per cent of the mothers who perceived their child to be overweight or obese were not concerned. Forty-four per cent of the mothers with overweight or obese children believed that their child was eating correctly.


CONCLUSIONS
A better understanding of how mothers perceive the problem of excess weight in their children is relevant to the success of preventive interventions in childhood obesity.
Genovesi
Simonetta
S
DIMEP Università degli Studi di Milano Bicocca, Monza, Italy. simonetta.genovesi@unimib.it
Giussani
Macro
M
Faini
Andrea
A
Vigorita
Federico
F
Pieruzzi
Federico
F
Strepparava
Maria Grazia
MG
Stella
Andrea
A
Valsecchi
Maria Grazia
MG
D001835:Body Weight; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004435:Eating; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D008297:Male; D009034:Mother-Child Relations; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology*; D009765:Obesity; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires