title: A longitudinal study on emotional dysregulation and obesity risk: From pregnancy to 3 years of age of the baby.
abstract: Some recent findings indicate that maternal sensitivity and emotional regulation may play a key role in predicting the risk for obesity of the child in early ages. The current article describes a longitudinal study encompassing more than 50 women, across a time-span that currently goes from pregnancy (n = 65) to three years of age of the baby (n = 53). In a previous report on our ongoing research project, we showed that emotional regulation during pregnancy and pre-pregnancy BMI significantly predicted the quality of the early, dyadic feeding interactions, at 7 months of age of the baby. The current study confirmed and extended those findings, by showing that maternal emotional dysregulation (r = .355, p = .009) and pre-pregnancy BMI (r = .389, p = .004) predicted the BMI of the child at three years of age too, with a medium to large effect size. However, neither maternal emotional regulation nor pre-pregnancy BMI significantly predicted infant attachment at one year of age.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Via degli Apuli 1, Rome, Italy. Electronic address: gaiadecampora@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Gaia
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: de Campora
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Fatebenefratelli Hospital, Piazza Fatebenefratelli 2, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Larciprete
authors.affiliation: Department of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Via degli Apuli 1, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Anna Maria
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Delogu
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, San Pietro Hospital, Via Cassia 600, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Meldolesi
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Turin, Via Po 14, Turin, Italy.
authors.forename: Luciano
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Giromini
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000342:Affective Symptoms / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology*; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004644:Emotions; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D009034:Mother-Child Relations / Q000523:psychology; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology*; D009765:Obesity / Q000523:psychology*; D050177:Overweight / Q000523:psychology; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000523:psychology; D012307:Risk Factors
keywords: BMI; Early risk factors; Emotion dysregulation; Feeding interactions; Obesity; Pregnancy