Evaluation of Children’s Lunch Box Contents by Photograph and Their Relationship with Mothers’ Concern

Abstract

Japanese kindergarten children usually bring lunch prepared by mothers. The contents may be influenced by mothers' food concerns. We investigated the relationship between mothers' concerns and children's lunch box contents and preferences. Lunch boxes of 209 children were digitally photographed for 4 days at a private kindergarten in Japan. The amounts of rice, main dishes, vegetables and fruits in the lunch boxes were estimated by measuring the area occupied by each in the photograph; a questionnaire, including questions on mothers' concerns and children's preferences, was completed by mothers. Vegetable amounts in the lunch boxes were significantly related to mother's concerns for their children's lunch. Compared with estimated vegetable amounts below 11%, the amounts above 11% indicated that the number of foods disliked by children was lower, and mothers reported a higher rate of mindfulness towards vegetables and lower rate towards frozen food and believed that they prepared a balanced lunch. Thus, vegetable amounts in children's lunch boxes, estimated using photographs, may predict mothers' food concerns and children's balanced/unbalanced diets.

The Relationship between Children’s Noncognitive Skills toward Food and Their Food Habits in a Cross-Sectional Study

“…Parental concern about adolescent weight was associated with lower intake of energy-dense snacks and less home availability of these food items (MacFarlane et al, 2010). In addition, our previous study suggested that the amount of vegetables in packed lunches may be related to mothers" concern for vegetables and children"s preferences (Osera et al, 2017b). The present study showed the same tendency as MacFarlane"s study and our previous study; the mother answered children"s high and low of non-cognitive skills toward food were significantly related to their lifestyle and food habits in children of all ages (Table 4).…”

The Effect on Children’s Attitudes Towards Food Associated With Their Non-Cognitive Skills, and With the Nutrition Knowledge of Their Parents

“…In addition, high daily intake of soybean products by children was shown to be influenced by their mother's concern and positive attitudes towards the food habits of their children (Osera et al, 2016). In another study, the proportion of vegetables in the lunch box was shown to be related to mother's concern related to consumption of an appropriate mix of foods by their children to the preferences of the children (Osera et al, 2017). In addition, the development of children's food preferences involves a complex interplay of innate, familial and environmental factors (Cook, 2004).…”