Abstract
The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of a family-based intervention program (REDUCE) on children’s eating behaviors and dietary intake. A two-arm randomized controlled field trial was conducted among parents and children of 7 to 10 years old who were either overweight or obese. The intervention was conducted via face-to-face sessions and social media. The child eating behaviors were assessed using the child eating behaviors questionnaire (CEBQ), while their dietary consumption of vegetables and unhealthy snacks was assessed using a parental report of three days unweighted food. The generalized linear mixed modelling adjusted for covariates was used to estimate the intervention effects with alpha of 0.05. A total of 122 parents (91% response rate) completed this study. At the six-month post-training, there were statistically significant mean differences in the enjoyment of food (F(6481) = 4.653, p < 0.001), fruit and vegetable intake (F(6480) = 4.165, p < 0.001) and unhealthy snack intake (F(6480) = 5.062, p < 0.001) between the intervention and wait-list groups; however, it was not clinically meaningful. This study added to the body of knowledge of family-based intervention that utilized social media and assessed the effect in children’s eating behavior using the CEBQ and children’s dietary intake.
Highlights
Childhood obesity is increasing worldwide [1]
A systematic review showed that parents who practiced restrictive guidance or setting rules were negatively associated with unhealthy food intake among children aged seven and older [6]
We developed the REDUCE (REorganise Diet, Unnecessary sCreen time and Exercise) family-based intervention program that targeted parents of overweight and obese children recruited at school
Summary
Childhood obesity is increasing worldwide [1]. In Malaysia, there was a threefold increase in prevalence within a four-year period between 2011 and 2015, 3.9% and 11.9%, respectively [2,3].Contributory factors to this increasing prevalence in Malaysia include increased access and intake of energy-dense food, sugar-sweetened beverages, increasing sedentary lifestyles and less physical activity.parents often neglected their roles in monitoring their children’s meal intake, especially among families where both parents are working [4]. In Malaysia, there was a threefold increase in prevalence within a four-year period between 2011 and 2015, 3.9% and 11.9%, respectively [2,3]. Contributory factors to this increasing prevalence in Malaysia include increased access and intake of energy-dense food, sugar-sweetened beverages, increasing sedentary lifestyles and less physical activity. Parents’ roles are important in promoting healthy diets and availability of healthy food and beverages at home. Parental control of availability of healthy food and unhealthy food at home showed to be the strongest associations with both healthy and unhealthy food intake among children [6].
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