Abstract
Background: The prevalence of obesity among Australian pre-school children is a major concern with links to poor health outcomes. One contributing factor is excess energy intake. Sugar-sweetened beverages are energy-dense, nutrient-poor, readily available and have been implicated in the increasing prevalence of obesity. Furthermore, preschooler beverage consumption may develop into dietary habits that track into adulthood. There is little research on factors influencing parents’ decision-making when serving beverages to their preschoolers, or on mothers’ perceptions of preschooler’s beverages. The aim of this study was to explore mothers’ perceptions of commonly consumed preschooler beverages. Methods: The Repertory Grid Technique and the Laddering Technique methodologies were utilized in interviews with 28 mothers from Melbourne, Australia, to explore beverage perceptions. Results: A large number of diverse perceptual categories (‘constructs’) (n = 22) about beverages were elicited, demonstrating the complexity of mothers’ perceptions when making beverage choices for their preschoolers. The five most common categories were related to health, sugar, dairy, packaging, and additives. Thematic analysis of responses from the laddering method identified three major themes: concerns about the types of beverages mothers would like to provide their preschoolers, the healthiness of a beverage, and the sugar content. Conclusions: Mothers’ perceptions of beverages are sophisticated and need to be included in the design of health communication strategies by health promoters and government agencies to influence mothers’ beverage selections for their preschoolers.
Highlights
The high prevalence of overweight and obesity among young children is a major public health concern and is linked to poor health outcomes in childhood and adulthood, including non-communicable diseases such as Type 2 diabetes [1,2], sleep apnoea [3], and adverse mental health outcomes [4]
The results showed that mothers had four goals in mind when they fed snacks to their preschoolers: convenience, satiety, eating nutritious food and freedom from additives
Twenty-eight mothers of preschoolers aged two to four years participated in the interviews
Summary
The high prevalence of overweight and obesity among young children is a major public health concern and is linked to poor health outcomes in childhood and adulthood, including non-communicable diseases such as Type 2 diabetes [1,2], sleep apnoea [3], and adverse mental health outcomes [4]. Poor diet quality, including excess energy, is associated with overweight and obesity in children including preschoolers [5]. Frequent and energy-dense, nutrient-poor beverage choices are indicators of overall poor diet quality [6], that may lead to excess energy intake and contribute to overweight and obesity. Mothers are generally considered as the primary household gatekeepers [11] They are typically primarily responsible for bringing beverages into the household and control their availability and accessibility [12]. Sugar-sweetened beverages are energy-dense, nutrient-poor, readily available and have been implicated in the increasing prevalence of obesity. Preschooler beverage consumption may develop into dietary habits that track into adulthood. The aim of this study was to explore mothers’ perceptions of commonly consumed preschooler beverages.
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