Obesity-Related Behaviors of US and Non-US Born Parents and Children in Low-income Households

Details

• Alternative Title:
  J Dev Behav Pediatr
• Personal Author:
  Cespedes, Elizabeth M. ; McDonald, Julia ; Haines, Jess ; Bottino, Clement J. ; Schmidt, Marie Evans ; Taveras, Elsie M.
• Description:
  Objective
  
  To examine differences in obesity-related behaviors by parental US born status among low-income, minority families participating in Healthy Habits, Happy Homes, an intervention trial to improve household routines for childhood obesity prevention. Evidence suggests lower obesity risk among adult immigrants, but research is inconclusive regarding the influence of having a non-US born parent on childhood obesity.
  
  Method
  
  We sampled 57 US born and 64 non-US born families of children ages 2–5.9 years living in the Boston area. At baseline, parents reported their own screen time, physical activity, diet, and sleep as well as their children’s behaviors. We used linear and logistic regression to examine the association of parental US born status with obesity-related behaviors.
  
  Results
  
  Mean (SD) BMI z-score was 0.94 (1.16) and did not differ between groups. After adjusting for parental education and child race/ethnicity, children of non-US (v. US) born parents had later bedtimes (0.81 hours later; 95% CI: 0.37, 1.25) and wake-up times (0.56 hours later; 95% CI: 0.16, 0.95) and engaged in less active play (0.15 fewer hours/day; 95% CI: −0.28, −0.01). Non-US (v. US) born parents had less screen exposure.
  
  Conclusion
  
  In this cross-section of low-income, urban families, having a parent born outside the US was associated with a profile of risk and protective behavior; adjustment for education and race/ethnicity removed protective associations of parental nativity with child behavior. Obesity-related differences in behaviors and home environments should be considered when designing interventions targeting low-income communities with a high proportion of non-US born participants.
  
  
• Subjects:
  Adult Black People Body Mass Index Child, Preschool Child Behavior Cross-Cultural Comparison Cross-Sectional Studies Emigrants And Immigrants Female Health Behavior Hispanic Or Latino Humans Male Parents Pediatric Obesity Poverty Randomized Controlled Trials As Topic Risk Young Adult

  More +
• Source:
  J Dev Behav Pediatr. 34(8):541-548.
• Pubmed ID:
  24131876
• Pubmed Central ID:
  PMC4159704
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• Funding:
  1U48DP00194/DP/NCCDPHP CDC HHS/United States ; T32 DK007703/DK/NIDDK NIH HHS/United States
• Place as Subject:
  Boston, MA
• Volume:
  34
• Issue:
  8
• Collection(s):
  CDC Public Access
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:2fcc81096d5c438a259c401228ff1b104ab33d788ca80fb2a31bbc1a5df1211f
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/30108/cdc_30108_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 208.90 KB ]