Pickard Abigail, Edwards Katie L, Farrow Claire, Haycraft Emma, Herle Moritz, Llewellyn Clare, Croker Helen, Kininmonth Alice, Blissett Jacqueline
School of Psychology, Institute of Health and Neurodevelopment, Aston University, Birmingham, UK.
Department of Clinical Psychology, School of Health in Social Science, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH8 9AG, UK.
Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2025 Feb 7;22(1):16. doi: 10.1186/s12966-025-01715-w.
Children with avid eating behaviour display high food responsiveness, high emotional overeating and low sensitivity to fullness; behaviours which may increase the risk of obesity and are challenging for parents to manage. This study explores the situational predictors of coercive or indulgent feeding practices among parents of children with avid eating behaviours using Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA).
The study involved 109 parents of 3-5-year-old children exhibiting avid eating behaviour. Over 10 days, participants completed EMA surveys via a mobile app to report on their mood, stress, feeding goals, and feeding practices during eating occasions. Multilevel modelling was used to assess how parental mood, goals, and the eating context (e.g., meal versus snack, public versus private setting) influenced feeding practices.
Parents were more likely to use specific coercive or indulgent feeding practices when experiencing higher stress, when aiming to avoid mealtime conflict, and during meals versus snacks. A negative meal atmosphere and a public setting also increased the likelihood of certain indulgent practices. Notably, parents were more likely to report giving their child food to calm them down or help manage their behaviour when the meal atmosphere was perceived as negative and if they aimed to reduce conflict at the meal. The findings highlight that the context of feeding occasions significantly drives the use of coercive or indulgent feeding practices.
Parental stress, goals, and the eating context are key determinants of coercive or indulgent feeding practices with children exhibiting avid eating behaviours. Interventions to support parents should consider these dynamic factors, promoting healthier feeding strategies tailored to real-life contexts.
具有强烈进食行为的儿童表现出对食物的高度反应性、情绪化暴饮暴食以及对饱腹感的低敏感性；这些行为可能会增加肥胖风险，并且对父母来说管理起来颇具挑战。本研究采用生态瞬时评估（EMA）方法，探讨具有强烈进食行为的儿童的父母采取强制或纵容喂养方式的情境预测因素。
该研究纳入了109名3至5岁表现出强烈进食行为的儿童的父母。在10天时间里，参与者通过移动应用程序完成EMA调查，以报告他们在进食期间的情绪、压力、喂养目标和喂养方式。采用多层次建模来评估父母的情绪、目标以及进食情境（例如，正餐与零食、公共场合与私人场合）如何影响喂养方式。
当父母压力更大、旨在避免用餐冲突以及在正餐而非零食期间时，他们更有可能采用特定的强制或纵容喂养方式。负面的用餐氛围和公共场合也增加了某些纵容行为的可能性。值得注意的是，当用餐氛围被认为是负面的，并且父母旨在减少用餐时的冲突时，他们更有可能报告给孩子食物以使其平静下来或帮助管理其行为。研究结果表明，进食场合的情境显著推动了强制或纵容喂养方式的使用。
父母的压力、目标以及进食情境是对具有强烈进食行为的儿童采取强制或纵容喂养方式的关键决定因素。支持父母的干预措施应考虑这些动态因素，推广适合现实生活情境的更健康的喂养策略。
