title: Low demanding parental feeding style is associated with low consumption of whole grains among children of recent immigrants.
abstract: We explored the influence of immigrant mothers feeding style on their children's fruit, vegetable and whole grain intake and how this relationship differed by mother's time in the U.S. Baseline data were collected on mother-child (3-12 yrs) dyads enrolled in Live Well (n = 313), a community-based, participatory, randomized controlled lifestyle intervention (2008-2013). Socio-demographics, years of residence in the U.S., behavioral data, and responses to the Caregiver's Feeding Styles Questionnaire (CFSQ) were obtained from the mother. Measured heights and weights were obtained for both mother and child. Child dietary intake was assessed using the Block Food Screener. Separate multiple linear regression models were run, adjusting for child and mother covariates. Interactions between feeding styles and years in the U.S. (<5 and ≥ 5 years), ethnicity, and child age were tested. Sixty-nine percent of mothers were overweight or obese, 46% of the children were overweight or obese. For mothers in the U.S. for<5 years, having a low demanding/high responsive style was associated with lower child intake of whole grains in adjusted models vs. a high demanding/high responsive style (p < 0.05). This was not seen for mothers in the U.S. for≥5 years. Thus, the influence of feeding style on dietary intake may change with length of time in the U.S. These hypotheses-generating findings call for future research to understand how broader socio-cultural factors influence the feeding dynamic among immigrants.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences, The University of Rhode Island, 112 Ranger Hall, Kingston, RI 02881, USA. Electronic address: alison_tovar@uri.edu.
authors.forename: Alison
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tovar
authors.affiliation: Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, Tufts University, 150 Harrison Avenue, Boston, MA 02111, USA. Electronic address: silvina.choumenkovitch@tufts.edu.
authors.forename: Silvina F
authors.initials: SF
authors.lastname: Choumenkovitch
authors.affiliation: National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA. Electronic address: erin.hennessy@nih.gov.
authors.forename: Erin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Hennessy
authors.affiliation: University of New England, Portland Campus, 716 Stevens Avenue, Portland, ME 04103, USA. Electronic address: rboulos@une.edu.
authors.forename: Rebecca
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Boulos
authors.affiliation: Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, Tufts University, 150 Harrison Avenue, Boston, MA 02111, USA; Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, Tufts University School of Medicine, 136 Harrison Ave., Boston, MA 02111, USA. Electronic address: Aviva.must@tufts.edu.
authors.forename: Aviva
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Must
authors.affiliation: Children's Nutrition Research Center, Baylor College of Medicine, 1100 Bates, Houston, TX 77030, USA. Electronic address: shughes@bcm.edu.
authors.forename: Sheryl O
authors.initials: SO
authors.lastname: Hughes
authors.affiliation: Civil and Environmental Engineering, School of Engineering, Tufts University, 200 College Avenue, Medford, MA 02155, USA. Electronic address: david.gute@tufts.edu.
authors.forename: David M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Gute
authors.affiliation: Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, Tufts University, 150 Harrison Avenue, Boston, MA 02111, USA. Electronic address: Emily.Kuross@tufts.edu.
authors.forename: Emily Kuross
authors.initials: EK
authors.lastname: Vikre
authors.affiliation: Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, Tufts University, 150 Harrison Avenue, Boston, MA 02111, USA. Electronic address: christina.economos@tufts.edu.
authors.forename: Christina D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Economos
mesh_terms: D000069:Acculturation; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004032:Diet; D002523:Edible Grain; D054242:Emigrants and Immigrants; D004641:Emigration and Immigration; D002149:Energy Intake; D005006:Ethnicity; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D005638:Fruit; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009035:Mothers; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D016487:Parenting; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology
keywords: Acculturation; Children; Dietary intake; Feeding styles; Immigrants; Obesity