Children and Parents’ Perceptions of Family Functioning Relating to Childhood Obesity

Abstract

The aim of this study was to describe the perception that children and their parents have about the family functioning relating to childhood obesity. A qualitative study, based on the family systemic theory, was developed. The participants were four children between 10 and 13 years old, with diagnosed obesity, overweight and normal weight, and five of their parents (four females and one male). The techniques used were semi structure interviews, which were audio-taped and transcribed to an electronic format. A thematic content analysis was applied, obtaining six categories: communication, beliefs about weight and body image, beliefs about food, family patterns, controlling eating and attempted solutions. The findings suggest the existence of paradox communication in the families, with contradictory and ambiguous instructions about the eating behavior of the child; beliefs about an ideal weight and type of body for children and adults; ideas about the nutritional qualities of the food that classify them as healthy or prejudicial; family norms that differ according to the role of who buys, cooks or allows the ingest of specific foods; children referring difficulties to control the food intake, while the parents point out that someone else is responsible for that lack of control; also, some strategies that the family has tried unsuccessfully to control the children weight were mentioned, such as diet or nutritional treatments. In summary, we conclude that the perception of childhood obesity is shared by parents and children, where the family interactions emerge as an element that maintains the children obesity having a lack of understatement about the necessary actions for the children's healthy development.

Relationship between biopsychosocial factors, body mass and body composition in preschool children

“…Family environment is of particular importance in building nutritional behaviour models. It determines not only the quality and calorie content of meals, but also the level of physical activity of the child (Rodríguez et al, 2016;Wojciechowska, 2014). Over the last two decades in Poland, a sociocultural change in nutrition and lifestyle has taken place that is conducive to body fat increase.…”

“…Szczególnie ważne w budowaniu wzorców zachowań żywieniowych dzieci jest środowisko rodzinne. Determinuje ono zarówno jakość czy zawartość kaloryczną spożywanych posiłków, jak i poziom aktywności fizycznej dziecka (Rodríguez et al, 2016;Wojciechowska, 2014). W ostatnich kilkudziesięciu latach w Polsce dokonała się socjokulturowa zmiana sposobu żywienia i trybu życia społeczeństwa, która sprzyja wzrostowi otłuszczenia ciała.…”

Exploracions de la dinámica familiar. Aportaciones orientadas al bienestar psicosocial de la niñez a la juventud

“…Las investigaciones han identificado que uno de los factores que funcionan como protectores en contra del sobrepeso y la obesidad es que los niños coman acompañados de un adulto, considerando que el adulto funciona como un regulador de las porciones y apoya con la elección de comida, encontrando además que aquellos niños quienes comen solos tienen un mayor riesgo de ganar peso en comparación con quienes comen con su familia (González et al, 2012). De igual forma, Colunga et al (2016) encontraron que la percepción que los hijos y los padres tienen sobre el funcionamiento del sistema familiar se relaciona con la obesidad infantil, identificando, además, que la comunicación juega un rol fundamental en la relación familia-obesidad, en donde se observa que, aunque la familia ya haya identificado problemas de peso en alguno de sus miembros, no modifica la forma en que se comunica. La interacción familiar como contexto de desarrollo de las prácticas de alimentación de sus miembros…”