Maternal mental health and child feeding problems in a non-clinical group.
OBJECTIVE
To compare the contribution of symptoms of anxiety, depression and eating psychopathology to reports of child feeding difficulties in a non-clinical group of mothers of male and female children.


METHODS
A community sample of 56 mothers of male children and 40 mothers of female children with a mean age of 32 months completed measures of anxiety, depression, eating psychopathology and child feeding problems.


RESULTS
In mothers of male children, symptoms of depression and anxiety, but not eating psychopathology, were predictors of difficult feeding interactions. In contrast, in mothers of female children, symptoms of bulimia and depression, but not anxiety, were significant predictors of reported food refusal.


CONCLUSIONS
Different aspects of psychopathological symptomology may be risk factors for reports of feeding problems dependent on the child's gender. Further work should continue to assess the nature and motivation for the controlling of feeding behaviors exhibited by mothers of children of different genders.
Blissett
J
J
School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK. j.blissett@bham.ac.uk
Meyer
C
C
Haycraft
E
E
D001007:Anxiety / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D016241:Child of Impaired Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003863:Depression / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D001068:Feeding and Eating Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D019959:Feeding and Eating Disorders of Childhood / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008425:Maternal Behavior / Q000523:psychology; D009034:Mother-Child Relations; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology*; D010555:Personality Inventory; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors