Parenting Behaviors and Nutrition in Children with Leukemia.
The aim of this study was to examine whether parenting behaviors are associated with child nutrition amongst pre-school children receiving treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), and to determine whether this association differs from that observed amongst a healthy population. Participants were 73 parents of children aged 2-6 years. The children were either a) receiving treatment for ALL (n = 43), or b) had no major medical history (n = 30). Participants completed psychometrically validated questionnaires that assessed parenting behaviors and child diet. Increased parental overprotection was associated with higher fruit and vegetable consumption for the control group but lower fruit and vegetable consumption for the ALL group. Parental overprotection, inconsistent discipline and emotional feeding were positively associated with non-core ("junk") food consumption for the ALL group, particularly those who had recently received steroid treatment. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to show that certain parenting behaviors may be associated with poor nutrition during treatment for ALL. In light of these results, parenting interventions, specifically targeting parenting behaviors such as assertive discipline, may be a mechanism for nutrition promotion amongst this vulnerable group.
Murdoch Children's Research Institute, 50 Flemington Road, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia. Lauren.Williams@mcri.edu.au.
Lauren Kendrea
LK
Williams
Murdoch Children's Research Institute, 50 Flemington Road, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia. Karen.Lamb@deakin.edu.au.|Department of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne, The Royal Children's Hospital, 50 Flemington Road, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia. Karen.Lamb@deakin.edu.au.|Faculty of Health, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Highway, Burwood, VIC, 3125, Australia. Karen.Lamb@deakin.edu.au.
Karen Elaine
KE
Lamb
Murdoch Children's Research Institute, 50 Flemington Road, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia. Maria.McCarthy@rch.org.au.|Children's Cancer Centre, Royal Children's Hospital, 50 Flemington Road, Parkville, VIC, 3052, Australia. Maria.McCarthy@rch.org.au.
Maria Catherine
MC
McCarthy
D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D004032:Diet / Q000379:methods*; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009749:Nutrition Surveys / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D016487:Parenting; D054198:Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
Cancer; Diet; Parenting; Pediatric oncology; Psycho-oncology