Abstract
Introduction. In recent years, the rate of childhood obesity has been on the rise, currently standing at levels close to 20%. This means that one in five children is more likely to suffer from cardiovascular or metabolic diseases. Physical Education classes are therefore an ideal way to raise awareness among children and their families about healthy and balanced eating habits. Method. A total of 113 primary school students, aged 9–12 years, participated in the study. In order to analyze the data, a structural equation model (SEM) was used to analyze the influence between the variables. Results. The SEM results revealed that a controlling social context showed a negative prediction of psychological need satisfaction and a positive prediction of frustration. However, an autonomy supportive social context showed a negative prediction of psychological need satisfaction and a positive prediction of psychological need satisfaction. Frustration of psychological needs was negatively related to motivation, whereas satisfaction was positively related to motivation. In turn, motivation was positively related to each of the factors of the theory of planned behaviour. Finally, intention to follow a healthy diet was positively related to the Mediterranean diet. Discussion. These results revealed the importance of social context and physical education classes in the adoption of a balanced diet.
Highlights
In recent years, the rate of childhood obesity has been on the rise, currently standing at levels close to 20%
The present study aimed to analyze the influence of parents and the Physical Education (PE) teacher on the basic psychological needs, motivation and intentional eating habits of school-aged children
The results of the study showed how the social context exerts a significant influence on the satisfaction and frustration of basic psychological needs, in such a way that support for autonomy has been positively related to satisfaction and negatively related to frustration, with psychological control being the opposite
Summary
The rate of childhood obesity has been on the rise, currently standing at levels close to 20%. The SEM results revealed that a controlling social context showed a negative prediction of psychological need satisfaction and a positive prediction of frustration. Abdominal obesity affects three out of ten children, especially boys [1] These data reflect a clear increase in childhood obesity rates in Spain in recent years, see [3,4]. Childhood overweight and obesity are associated with a higher probability of becoming obese adults and with a higher risk of suffering from diseases, such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease or certain types of cancer in adulthood [5,6] For this reason, Physical Education (PE) classes can play a fundamental role in promoting healthy lifestyle habits, as their objectives include healthy and balanced nutrition and the adoption of active habits during leisure time [7]. The influence of parents and teachers on the dietary behaviour and physical exercise of young people is fundamental [8]
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