title: Relationships among body mass index, parental perceptions, birthweight and parental weight after referral to a weight clinic.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  We sought to determine whether, in a specialty referral clinic, parental perceptions of their child's obesity were commensurate with the child's body mass index z score. Secondarily, we examined the impact of birth weight and parental body mass index on their child's body mass index z score and review results of an intake questionnaire.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional study
  
  
  METHODS
  University of Michigan from March 21, 2003 through June 30, 2004
  
  
  METHODS
  Eighty-two children ages 1-20.2 years of age
  
  
  METHODS
  Body mass index z score for all participants was calculated. An intake questionnaire was completed by caregivers in which they were asked to describe their child as little overweight, overweight, very overweight or obese.
  
  
  METHODS
  Mean body mass index z score was compared to each parental descriptor. Regression analysis related body mass index z score to birthweight and parental body mass index.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Body mass index z score was not related to parental descriptors. Maternal body mass index and child birthweight were predictors of the child's body mass index z score (r2=0.15, p<0.05; and r2=0.11, p<0.05, respectively). Both together produced a better model than either alone (r2=0.23, p<0.05). There was no relationship between paternal and child body mass index z score (p>0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There is a divergence between the parental perception of childhood obesity and the clinical definition that persists even in the context of an explicit referral. Given the significant impact of maternal weight on childhood overweight, education for prevention of overweight youth should encompass prenatal, early childhood and adolescent health maintenance.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Division of Endocrinology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-0718, USA.
authors.forename: Mark G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Watkins
authors.forename: Kathryn M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Clark
authors.forename: Carol M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Foster
authors.forename: Kathleen B
authors.initials: KB
authors.lastname: Welch
authors.forename: Josephine Z
authors.initials: JZ
authors.lastname: Kasa-Vubu
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001724:Birth Weight; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001835:Body Weight; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008019:Life Style; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D010465:Perception; D012017:Referral and Consultation; D012044:Regression Analysis; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires