title: Associations between family eating behaviours and body composition measures in peri-adolescents: results from a community-based study of school-aged children.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To identify key eating behaviours in children and their parents and to determine the associations between these behaviours and measures of body composition in children.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data were collected on a sample of 431 peri-adolescent children (12.4±0.3 years) and their parents from the Niagara Region. Body composition was assessed by trained research assistants. Eating behaviours were assessed using a revised version of the Family Eating and Activity Habits Questionnaire. Principal component analyses were used to identify key eating behaviours among children, mothers and fathers. Linear regression models were used to assess their associations with body mass index (BMI), waist-to-height ratio, waist-to-hip ratio, waist girth, and hip girth measures in children.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Emotional/uncontrolled eating and eating by the television in children and their mothers were positively associated with measures of body composition in children. Other eating behaviours that were associated with larger measures of body composition in children included low frequency of eating meals with parents, frequent sweet beverage consumption and snacking and eating "on-the-go" in children, eating "on-the-go" in mothers, and emotional eating and eating by the television/late at night in fathers.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The eating behaviours of children and mothers, and to a lesser degree fathers, are important predictors of children's body composition. Public health interventions designed to help mothers and children reduce the frequency of emotional/uncontrolled eating and eating by the television may be effective means of facilitating positive weight outcomes in children.
authors.forename: Samantha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hajna
authors.forename: Paul J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Leblanc
authors.forename: Brent E
authors.initials: BE
authors.lastname: Faught
authors.forename: Anwar T
authors.initials: AT
authors.lastname: Merchant
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cairney
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hay
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Health Sciences, Brock University, 500 Glenridge Avenue, St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada.. jliu@brocku.ca.
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D001823:Body Composition; D002170:Canada / Q000453:epidemiology; D002648:Child; D002652:Child Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D004644:Emotions; D005220:Fathers / Q000523:psychology*; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology*; D063766:Pediatric Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013690:Television; D013997:Time Factors
keywords: Child; behaviour; body composition; parents
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