Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, PO Box 35, 40014, Finland.
Department of Food and Nutrition, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 66, 00014, Finland.
Appetite. 2024 Sep 1;200:107578. doi: 10.1016/j.appet.2024.107578. Epub 2024 Jun 21.
As a way of modeling healthier eating habits for their children, parents may intentionally avoid consuming sugary foods and drinks (SFDs) in their presence but consume these on other occasions (later referred to as parental secretive eating). This study aimed to 1) explore the prevalence of parental secretive eating, 2) investigate the associations between parental secretive eating and SFD consumption in parents and children, and 3) qualitatively explore the reasons for parental secretive eating. Participants were Finnish mothers (n = 362), fathers (n = 123), and their 3-6-year-old children (n = 403); this data was collected in 2017 as part of the baseline assessment of the DAGIS intervention. Parents reported how often they avoided eating SFDs in the presence of their child, completed food frequency questionnaires for themselves and their child, and responded to an open-ended question of explaining reasons for secretive eating. The overall prevalence of parental secretive eating was 68%. It was more common among mothers than fathers (p < 0.001) and most prevalent in chocolate (61%) and sweets (59%). Parental secretive eating was positively associated with SFD consumption both among mothers (ꞵ = 0.274, p < 0.001) and fathers (ꞵ = 0.210, p = 0.028) in linear regression models adjusted for parents' and child's age, child's gender, parental education level, and number of household members. Mothers' or fathers' secretive eating and child's SFD consumption were not associated (ꞵ = 0.031, p = 0.562; ꞵ = -0.143; p = 0.167). Three themes describing reasons for parental secretive eating were found: family food rules, avoiding child's requests, and aspiration for healthy modeling. In conclusion, parental secretive eating may play an important role in determining SFD consumption in families with preschoolers. Additional research is needed to determine whether parents can prevent their own eating habits from influencing their child through secretive eating.
作为向孩子示范更健康饮食习惯的一种方式，父母可能会有意在孩子面前避免食用含糖食品和饮料（SFD），但在其他场合食用（后文称为父母隐秘饮食）。本研究旨在：1）探究父母隐秘饮食的流行程度；2）调查父母隐秘饮食与父母和孩子 SFD 消费之间的关联；3）从定性角度探究父母隐秘饮食的原因。参与者包括芬兰母亲（n=362）、父亲（n=123）及其 3-6 岁的孩子（n=403）；这些数据是在 2017 年作为 DAGIS 干预的基线评估的一部分收集的。父母报告了他们在孩子面前避免食用 SFD 的频率，为自己和孩子完成了食物频率问卷，并回答了一个关于隐秘饮食原因的开放式问题。父母隐秘饮食的总体流行率为 68%。母亲的隐秘饮食比父亲更常见（p<0.001），巧克力（61%）和糖果（59%）最常见。在调整父母和孩子的年龄、孩子的性别、父母的教育水平和家庭人数后，线性回归模型显示，父母隐秘饮食与母亲（ꞵ=0.274，p<0.001）和父亲（ꞵ=0.210，p=0.028）的 SFD 消费呈正相关。母亲或父亲的隐秘饮食与孩子的 SFD 消费之间没有关联（ꞵ=0.031，p=0.562；ꞵ=-0.143；p=0.167）。发现了描述父母隐秘饮食原因的三个主题：家庭食物规则、避免孩子的要求和对健康榜样的渴望。总之，父母的隐秘饮食可能在决定有学龄前儿童的家庭中 SFD 消费方面发挥重要作用。需要进一步研究以确定父母是否可以通过隐秘饮食来防止自己的饮食习惯影响孩子。
