Research
Maternal Child-Feeding Practices: Relationship with the BMI and Body Fat Percentage of Mexican children
Objectives: 1) To assess the reliability of the Child Feeding Questionnaire (CFQ), 2) To describe maternal child feeding practices (MCFP) and 3) To associate the MCFP with the child’s body mass index (BMI) and body fat percentage (BFP). Methods: A cross-sectional correlational study. Participants: 786 pairs (mother and preschooler / schooler child). The mothers answered the CFQ, which consists of 31 items, distributed among seven factors. The mother’s and child’s weight and height were measured, and the child’s BFP. Descriptive statistics and Spearman’s correlation coefficient were applied. Results: The CFQ obtained a 0.75 Cronbach’s alpha coefficient, 283 children (36.01%) were overweight or obese, BFP mean was 25.90 (SD = 9.92) for boys and 27.20 (SD = 8.79) for girls. Related to MCFP, the perceived responsibility factor obtained the highest score (Mean = 84.35, SD = 16.99), while the lowest scores were for perceived child weight (Mean = 50.06, SD = 8.38) and concern about child weight (Mean = 44.69, SD = 29.34). The factor, perceived child weight was associated with the child’s BMI (rs = 564, p = .001) and BFP (rs = 535, p = .001). Conclusions: The internal consistency of the CFQ was acceptable. The mothers considered themselves responsible for their child’s feeding, although the child’s weight didn’t represent a concern. Interventions are recommended to help the mother accurately perceive their child’s weight.
