Despite greater risk for poor nutrition, inactivity, and overweight, some low-income children are able to maintain a healthy weight. We explore if a strong family sense of coherence (FSOC) acts as a protective factor against childhood obesity for low-income preschool children. Families with a strong FSOC view challenges as predictable, understandable, worthy of engaging, and surmountable. Data were collected from 321 low-income mothers and their preschool children in five states between March 2011 and May 2013. FSOC was assessed using the Family Sense of Coherence Scale. A 16-item checklist was used to assess practicing healthy child behaviors (fruit and vegetable consumption and availability, physical activity, and family meals) and limiting unhealthy child behaviors (sweetened beverage and fast food consumption, energy dense snack availability, and screen time). Child body mass index (BMI) z-scores were calculated from measured height and weight. FSOC was significantly associated with practicing healthy child behaviors (β = 0.32, p < .001). We did not find a statistically significant association between FSOC and limiting unhealthy child behaviors or child BMI z-scores in fully adjusted models. Our results suggest the importance of family functioning in predicting health behaviors around food consumption and availability, physical activity, and family meals.
The key to future success in child obesity prevention and treatment may be found in the application of the resiliency framework to the exploration of childhood obesity from a protective perspective focusing on the family context.
Five studies examined defensive intergroup helping-when responsibility for an out-group victim's injury decreases helping, whereas lack of responsibility increases helping when death is salient. In Study 1 ( N = 350), implicit death primes increased petition signings to allow a Palestinian child to receive medical treatment in Israel, when the child was a victim of Palestinian fire. When the child was a victim of Israeli fire, however, death primes decreased petition signings. Study 2 ( N = 200) partially replicated these effects on commitment to donate blood to an injured Palestinian child. Study 3 ( N = 162) found that moral affirmation primes moderate defensive helping effects. Study 4 ( N = 372) replicated defensive helping, but failed to replicate the moral affirmation effect found in Study 3. Study 5 ( N = 243) partially replicated defensive helping and found that different framings of existential threat moderate the effect. Overall, results indicate that self-protective concerns underlie prosocial responses to out-group members in need.
Objective To provide preliminary descriptive data on caregiver and child weight status, parenting styles, feeding styles, and feeding practices of a small American Indian sample. Methods Participants included a subsample of American Indian caregivers (n = 23) identified from a larger study that was conducted in five states. Using previously validated instruments, means, standard deviations, and ranges for general parenting styles, feeding styles, and feeding practices were explored. Results In general, most caregivers reported healthy feeding practices. Most caregivers scored higher on responsive compared to restrictive or permissive in general parenting. Of the sample, 12 caregivers (52.2 %) were classified in the indulgent feeding style category, 5 caregivers (21.7 %) were classified as authoritative, 5 (21.7 %) uninvolved, and 1 (4.3 %) authoritarian. Conclusions More investigations are needed to explore questions raised by this study about using common tools that measure childhood obesity with American Indian families.
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