Do children and their parents eat a similar diet? Resemblance in child and parental dietary intake: systematic review and meta-analysis.
OBJECTIVE
Parents are believed to have a strong influence on children's eating behaviours. However, previous findings on child-parent resemblance in dietary intakes are mixed. We systematically reviewed and meta-analysed the association (correlations) based on published studies.


METHODS
We searched related studies published since 1980 and found 24 studies meeting inclusion criteria for review and 15 for meta-regression analysis. We compared the associations between parent-child pairs, nutrients, over time and by dietary assessment method.


RESULTS
Most studies were based on small samples. Overall, they suggest a moderate or weak association, but findings varied remarkably. Our meta-analysis showed that average Fisher's transformed correlations were 0.20 (95% CI 0.13 to 0.28) for fat (% energy); for energy, 0.21 (0.18 to 0.24). The correlations varied by parent-child pairs, dietary assessment and countries. Food frequency questionnaires or mixed approaches yielded lower correlation than 24-h recalls or food records. Child self-reported intakes showed weaker correlation and better methodology quality showed stronger correlation in fat intake (% energy), which also became weaker over time.


CONCLUSIONS
Overall, the resemblance is weak, and it varied considerably across studies, nutrients, foods and parent-child pairs.
Center for Human Nutrition, Department of International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA. ywang@jhsph.edu
Y
Y
Wang
M A
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Beydoun
J
J
Li
Y
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Liu
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Moreno
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D015706:Bibliometrics; D002648:Child; D015930:Diet Records; D004734:Energy Metabolism; D005006:Ethnicity; D005191:Family Characteristics / Q000208:ethnology; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006293:Health Promotion; D006801:Humans; D011939:Mental Recall; D010287:Parent-Child Relations / Q000208:ethnology; D010290:Parents; D012923:Social Class