Parents' healthy weight perceptions and preferences regarding obesity counseling in preschoolers: pediatricians matter.
OBJECTIVE
To compare parental report of child body image with perceived healthy weight body image in preschoolers and describe weight-counseling preferences.


METHODS
Parents seeking well-child care were interviewed and asked to select images resembling: (a) their own child's current weight, (b) a healthy weight preschooler, and (c) friend and family report of a healthy weight preschooler. Those indicating that their overweight or obese child resembled a healthy weight image were considered to misclassify child weight. Logistic regression was used to identify predictors of misclassification and card-sorting exercises explored weight-counseling preferences.


RESULTS
Of the 150 preschoolers in our sample, 32.7% (n = 49) were overweight or obese with misclassification occurring in 71.4% of parents (n = 35). Absence of pediatrician comment on child weight strongly predicted misclassification (odds ratio, 12.3; 95% confidence interval, 1.74-87.2). Pediatricians were highly valued weight advisors.


CONCLUSIONS
Weight-focused advice from pediatricians matters to parents and may promote parental identification of early childhood weight risks.
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA. rhernand@health.usf.edu
Raquel G
RG
Hernandez
Tina L
TL
Cheng
Janet R
JR
Serwint
D000328:Adult; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001835:Body Weight; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003376:Counseling / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis*; D016017:Odds Ratio; D050177:Overweight / Q000175:diagnosis; D010290:Parents / Q000193:education / Q000523:psychology*; D010372:Pediatrics; D010819:Physician's Role; D012938:Social Perception; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D000078329:Workforce