Children's food and satiety responsiveness in association with post-prandial glucose following a standardized liquid meal.

Abstract

Children's responsiveness to food cues and satiety may put them at greater risk for obesity; however, little is known about the physiological mechanisms underlying children's responsiveness to food and satiety. The objective of this study was to examine the association between children's post-prandial glucose responses and maternal report of their eating behaviours. A secondary data analysis was conducted using partial correlation analyses adjusted for gender in a sample of children aged 5-10 years and their mothers (N = 28 dyads). Standardized liquid meal tests were administered to children and blood samples were obtained over the following 4 h. Mothers completed the Children's Eating Behaviour Questionnaire. An earlier post-prandial peak glucose concentration was associated with greater food responsiveness (r = -0.39, P = 0.04) but not satiety responsiveness. The percent increase in glucose from fasting to peak also tended to be inversely associated with greater food responsiveness (r = -0.38, P = 0.05). Results suggest that earlier and smaller post-prandial glucose excursions may be related to children's response to food cues. Future research should use objective methods to examine whether the association of post-prandial glucose with food responsiveness prospectively contributes to weight gain.