Abstract
BackgroundThe family environment offers several opportunities through which to improve adolescents' weight and weight-related behaviors. This study aims to examine the cross-sectional relationships between multiple factors in the family environment and physical activity (PA), television use (TV), soft drink intake, fruit and vegetable (FV) intake, body mass index (BMI), and body composition among a sample of sociodemographically-diverse adolescent girls.MethodsSubjects included girls (mean age = 15.7), 71% of whom identified as a racial/ethnic minority, and one of their parents (dyad n = 253). Parents completed surveys assessing factors in the family environment including familial support for adolescents' PA, healthful dietary intake, and limiting TV use; parental modeling of behavior; and resources in the home such as availability of healthful food. Girls' PA and TV use were measured by 3-Day Physical Activity Recall (3DPAR) and dietary intake by survey measures. BMI was measured by study staff, and body fat by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Hierarchical linear regression models tested individual and mutually-adjusted relationships between family environment factors and girls' outcomes.ResultsIn the individual models, positive associations were observed between family support for PA and girls' total PA (p = .011) and moderate-to-vigorous PA (p=.016), home food availability and girls' soft drink (p < .001) and FV (p < .001) intake, and family meal frequency and girls' FV intake (p = .023). Across the individual and mutually-adjusted models, parental modeling of PA, TV, and soft drink and FV intake was consistently associated with girls' behavior.ConclusionsHelping parents improve their physical activity and dietary intake, as well as reduce time watching television, may be an effective way to promote healthful behaviors and weight among adolescent girls.
Highlights
The family environment offers several opportunities through which to improve adolescents’ weight and weight-related behaviors
To confirm that this was a unique sample of sedentary girls, girls in the current study reported engaging in 3.0 blocks of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) per day and 7.9 blocks of sedentary activity per day
Overall this study identified a number of future directions for research as well as potential intervention points to help parents create a family environment that supports adolescents’ healthful eating and physical activity
Summary
The family environment offers several opportunities through which to improve adolescents’ weight and weight-related behaviors. Social Cognitive Theory postulates that mechanisms in individuals’ social environments, including modeling of behavior, access or barriers to resources, reinforcement of behavior, and social norms for behaviors influence individuals’ participation in behaviors that promote or harm health [7]. In support of this theory, researchers have begun to examine factors in the family environment that may play an important role in youths’ weight and weight-related behaviors. Some studies have found associations between parental support and encouragement for physical activity [8] and healthy eating [9] and adolescents’ physical activity and dietary intake. Studies suggest that physical resources in the home such as the number of televisions [16], having a television in youths’ bedrooms [17], and having healthy or unhealthy food available in the home [18,19] contribute to adolescents’ behavior
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