Mediators of Maternal Depression and Family Structure on Child BMI: Parenting Quality and Risk Factors for Child Overweight

McConley, Regina L.; Mrug, Sylvie; Gilliland, M. Janice; Lowry, Richard; Elliott, Marc N.; Schuster, Mark A.; Bogart, Laura M.; Franzini, Luisa; Escobar-Chaves, S. Liliana; Franklin, Frank A.

doi:10.1038/oby.2010.177

Cited by 77 publications

(81 citation statements)

References 57 publications

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“…Prenatal exposure to maternal stress and distress has been shown to be associated with both children's obesity and rapid postnatal growth (108,109). Proposed mechanisms for the association include infant feeding practices (110), mother-infant interaction (111), mother-infant feeding interactions (112), parenting style (113), and a direct effect of stressors leading to central adiposity via arousal of the child's hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (86). It has also been suggested that, due to the comorbidity between maternal overweight and emotion regulation, these pathways may also play into the intergenerational transfer of overweight and obesity (112), as well as the roles of shared genes and environment (86).…”

Section: Psychosocial Vulnerabilitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biological, environmental, and social influences on childhood obesity

2015

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The prevalence of childhood obesity has increased globally over the past three decades, with evidence of recent leveling off in developed countries. Reduction in the, currently high, prevalence of obesity will require a full understanding of the biological and social pathways to obesity in order to develop appropriately targeted prevention strategies in early life. Determinants of childhood obesity include individual level factors, including biological, social, and behavioral risks, acting within the influence of the child's family environment, which is, in turn, imbedded in the context of the community environment. These influences act across childhood, with suggestions of early critical periods of biological and behavioral plasticity. There is evidence of sex and gender differences in the responses of boys and girls to their environments. The evidence that determinants of childhood obesity act at many levels and at different stages of childhood is of policy relevance to those planning early health promotion and primary prevention programs as it suggests the need to address the individual, the family, the physical environment, the social environment, and social policy. The purpose of this narrative review is to summarize current, and emerging, literature in a multilevel, life course framework. INTRODUCTIONThe prevalence of childhood obesity has increased globally over the past three decades, with more rapid increases recently occurring in low-income countries (1). In the United States, more than 30% of children are now overweight or obese (1), with evidence that the prevalence has leveled off (2). Children and adolescents are exhibiting obesity-related conditions such as type 2 diabetes, elevated blood pressure, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and higher fasting insulin levels (3-6). In addition, childhood obesity predicts adulthood obesity and its known health consequences (7,8). Treatment of obesity is notoriously difficult, with weight loss rarely sustained in adults (9). Therapeutic interventions in childhood are somewhat more successful, particularly if the intervention occurs prior to onset of puberty (10). However, real and sustained progress in combating the obesity epidemic will require a full understanding of the biological and social pathways to obesity in order to develop appropriately targeted prevention strategies in early life.Pathways to childhood obesity are complex. It is therefore helpful to discuss determinants of obesity within a conceptual framework. A multilevel conceptual model, Bronfenbrenner's Bioecological Systems Theory (11), has previously been applied to the conceptualization of childhood obesity by Davison and Birch (12). This framework depicts individual-level factors, including biological, social, and behavioral risks, as acting within the influence of the child's family environment, which is, in turn imbedded in the context of the community environment. It is also helpful to consider critical periods for obesity risk and, as will be further illustrated in a later section,...

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Section: Psychosocial Vulnerabilitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biological, environmental, and social influences on childhood obesity

2015

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“…Maternal depression, which is estimated to afflict 14 % of women of reproductive age [12], has been implicated as a potential risk factor for childhood overweight and obesity [22]. The relationship of maternal depression and childhood overweight/obesity has been hypothesized to be associated with parenting practices [16], as depressed mothers may have difficulty sustaining exclusive breastfeeding [1], recognizing child satiety cues [18,19], providing healthful food choices [18,24], and modeling physical activity behaviors relative to non-depressed mothers [23]. Maternal depression also increases risk for depression in children [5,14,15], which may in turn influence children's weight [25].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maternal Depression and Childhood Overweight in the CHAMACOS Study of Mexican-American Children

Audelo

Kogut

Harley

et al. 2016

Matern Child Health J

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Objective Although previous studies have examined the impact of maternal depression on child overweight and obesity, little is known about the relationship in Latino families, who suffer from high risks of depression and obesity. We prospectively investigated the association between depressive symptoms in women with young children and child overweight and obesity (overweight/obesity) at age 7 years among Latino families. Methods Participants included 332 singletons with anthropometric measures obtained at 7 years from the Center for the Health Assessment of Mothers and Children of Salinas (CHAMACOS) study, a birth cohort study. Maternal depression was assessed using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression (CES-D) scale when the children were 1, 3.5, and 7 years. Overweight and obesity was measured by body mass index (kg/m 2 ) at age 7 years. Results 63 % of women had CES-D scores consistent with depression in at least one of the 3 given assessments. Compared to children whose mothers were never depressed, children whose mothers were depressed at all three assessments had 2.4 times the adjusted odds of overweight/ obesity at age 7 years (95 % CI 1.1-5.6). However, a single positive maternal depression screen was not associated with child overweight/obesity and there was no difference in the odds of overweight/obesity by the age of the child when maternal depression occurred. Conclusion Chronic maternal depression during a child's early life was associated with child overweight/obesity at 7 years. Addressing maternal depression is a critical component of comprehensive obesity prevention and treatment strategies for Latino children.

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“…Some research suggests that parenting quality may partially mediate associations between maternal depression and elementary-school children's BMI (14) . One study of elementary-school children found links between maternal depressive symptoms and children's BMI, with some evidence that unhealthy eating habits partially mediated this association among boys (32) , but research on the dietary mechanisms during the developmentally important early childhood period remain unexplored.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Mothers' depressive symptoms may affect parenting behaviours related to children's eating habits or physical activity in ways that may contribute to obesity among their children (14) . For example, some studies show that mothers exhibiting depressive symptoms have a lower likelihood of breast-feeding (15) .…”

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confidence: 99%

A longitudinal analysis of maternal depressive symptoms and children's food consumption and weight outcomes

Morrissey

Dagher

2014

Public Health Nutr.

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Objective: Maternal depressive symptoms negatively impact mothers' parenting practices and children's development, but the evidence linking these symptoms to children's obesity is mixed. Design: We use a large sample to examine contemporaneous and lagged associations between maternal depressive symptoms and children's BMI, obesity and food consumption, controlling for background characteristics. Setting: Data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Birth Cohort (ECLS-B), a longitudinal study of children from infancy through kindergarten in the USA, were collected at four waves from 2001 to 2007, when children were 9 months, 2 years, 4 years and 5 1 /2 years of age, through surveys, child assessments and observations. Subjects: A sub-sample of children from the ECLS-B is used (n 6500). Results: Between 17 % and 19 % of mothers reported experiencing depressive symptoms; 17 % to 20 % of children were obese. Maternal depressive symptoms were associated with a small decrease in the likelihood her child was obese (0?8 percentage points) and with lower consumption of healthy foods. The duration of maternal depressive symptoms was associated with higher BMI (0?02 SD) among children whose parents lacked college degrees. Conclusions: Results indicate that mothers' depressive symptoms have small associations with children's food consumption and obesity. Among children whose parents lack college degrees, persistent maternal depressive symptoms are associated with slightly higher child BMI. Findings highlight the need to control for depression in analyses of children's weight. Interventions that consider maternal depression early may be useful in promoting healthy weight outcomes and eating habits among children.

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Mediators of Maternal Depression and Family Structure on Child BMI: Parenting Quality and Risk Factors for Child Overweight

Cited by 77 publications

References 57 publications

Biological, environmental, and social influences on childhood obesity

Biological, environmental, and social influences on childhood obesity

Maternal Depression and Childhood Overweight in the CHAMACOS Study of Mexican-American Children

A longitudinal analysis of maternal depressive symptoms and children's food consumption and weight outcomes

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