Parental Misperceptions of Children's Weight and Their Association With Feeding Practices.
Journal
Journal of nutrition education and behavior
Journal Volume
58
Journal Issue
2
Start Page
74-85
ISSN
1878-2620
Date Issued
2026-02
Author(s)
Abstract
Objective: To examine associations between parental perceptions of child weight and feeding practices.
Design: Cross-sectional study using parent and self-reported questionnaires to collect data on parental perceptions, feeding practices, demographic characteristics, and self-reported anthropometric data.
Setting: Elementary schools in Hsinchu County, Taiwan.
Participants: A total of 2,507 parent-child dyads with children aged 10-11 years in Taiwan.
Variables measured: Primary variables included parental weight perceptions, feeding practices (monitoring, pressure-to-eat [PE], restriction, and reward-based practices), sociodemographic characteristics, and anthropometric measurements.
Analysis: Linear regression models analyzed associations between feeding practices and parental underestimation of child weight, with separate models for fathers and mothers, adjusting for child sex and socioeconomic status. Multiple imputation addressed missing data.
Results: Parental underestimation of child weight was common (fathers: 28.9%, mothers: 26.9%), particularly for children with overweight or obesity. Both parents showed increased PE practices when underestimating weight (fathers: coefficient = 0.24; mothers: coefficient = 0.26; P < 0.001). Mothers reduced restriction (coefficient = -0.10, P = 0.02) and used more PE with sons (coefficient = 0.15, P < 0.001), whereas fathers employed more reward-based practices with daughters (coefficient = 0.14, P = 0.005).
Conclusions and implications: Findings reveal distinct gender differences in how parental weight perceptions relate to feeding practices. Health care providers should consider these patterns when developing family-based weight management strategies.
Subjects
childhood obesity
gender differences
parent-child relationships
parental feeding practices
weight perception
Publisher
Elsevier B.V.
Type
journal article