title: Mothers' restrictive eating and food neophobia and fathers' dietary quality are associated with breast-feeding duration and introduction of solid foods: the STEPS study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of the present study was to examine the association between parental eating behaviours and dietary patterns and feeding practices of infants and young children.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data on infant-feeding practices were collected from each infant's birth via parentally self-administered follow-up diaries. Three questionnaires, the Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire, the Food Neophobia Scale and the Index of Diet Quality, were administered when the children were aged 4 and 13 months.
  
  
  METHODS
  South-western Finland.
  
  
  METHODS
  Families participating in the STEPS longitudinal cohort study (n 1797).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mean duration of exclusive breast-feeding was 2.4 months and total duration of breast-feeding averaged 8.1 months. The first solid food was introduced into children's diets at the age of 3.9 months, on average. Mothers with highly restrictive eating were more likely to introduce solid foods sooner than mothers who ranked lower in these behaviours (3.8 months v. 4.0 months, P = 0.012). Neophobic mothers breast-fed exclusively (2.0 v. 2.6 months, P = 0.038) and in total (7.2 v. 8.5 months, P = 0.039) for shorter times than average mothers, even after adjusting for various demographic characteristics. Fathers' diet quality was associated with total breast-feeding duration and with introduction of complementary foods in unadjusted analyses and with total breast-feeding duration also after adjusting for confounding factors.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Mothers' and fathers' eating patterns and practices are associated with the feeding practices of infants and young children. Health promotion interventions seeking to improve parents' eating patterns might lead to more favourable feeding practices for infants and young children.
authors.affiliation: 1Turku Institute for Child and Youth Research,FI-20014 University of Turku,Finland.
authors.forename: Jenni
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Vaarno
authors.affiliation: 1Turku Institute for Child and Youth Research,FI-20014 University of Turku,Finland.
authors.forename: Harri
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Niinikoski
authors.affiliation: 1Turku Institute for Child and Youth Research,FI-20014 University of Turku,Finland.
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kaljonen
authors.affiliation: 3Turku City Hospital,Outpatient Clinic for Children and Adolescents,Turku,Finland.
authors.forename: Minna
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Aromaa
authors.affiliation: 1Turku Institute for Child and Youth Research,FI-20014 University of Turku,Finland.
authors.forename: Hanna
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lagström
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001942:Breast Feeding; D004032:Diet; D005220:Fathers; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D005387:Finland; D005518:Food Preferences; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007227:Infant Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; D008297:Male; D009035:Mothers; D016487:Parenting; D010551:Personality; D010698:Phobic Disorders
keywords: Breast-feeding; Complementary feeding; Parental eating behaviour