Parental Lifestyle Changes and Correlations with Children’s Dietary Changes during the First COVID-19 Lockdown in Greece: The COV-EAT Study

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate changes in the eating behaviour of parents during the first lockdown implemented in Greece due to COVID-19 and to explore possible associations with corresponding changes in the eating behaviour of their children. A quantitative cross-sectional study was performed using an online questionnaire. The study sample consisted of 397 parents with children aged 2–18 years, who were recruited from 63 municipalities in Greece. It was observed that the percentage of parents and children reporting consumption of breakfast during the lockdown period increased by 10.6% and 5%, respectively. Also, 75% of the parents increased their snack consumption and 61% their sweets consumption. Parents increased home-cooking during lockdown (6.4 times/week), compared to 5.6 times/week before (p < 0.001), which was associated with decreased consumption of fast foods for both parents and children (p < 0.001 for all comparisons) and also correlated with increased consumption of fruit and vegetables for children (p < 0.05). More than half parents tried to lose weight during lockdown (58.4%). In conclusion, both favourable (home-cooking) and unfavourable (increased snacking) lifestyle changes during the first COVID-19 lockdown in Greece were reported for parents.

Changes in Student’s Breakfast and Snack Consumption during the Second COVID-19 Lockdown in Portugal: A Five-Wave Study

“…Rodríguez-Pérez et al [ 31 ] found a distinct trend in Spain; data showed that, during the lockdown, adherence to a Mediterranean Diet (i.e., olive oil, vegetables, fruit, low protein) [ 32 ] increased, and the intake of pastries and sweetened beverages decreased. Similar results were found in Greece, another European country following a Mediterranean Diet, where children decreased fast-food consumption and increased fruit and vegetables intake due to parents home-cooking more often during the lockdown [ 27 ].…”

“…Staying at home also changed students’ eating habits. A study conducted in Greece suggested that children’s breakfast consumption during the first lockdown period increased in 5% [ 27 ]. In addition, there was a higher percentage of snack consumption (e.g., vegetables, dairy, sugary foods) overall, and a rise in food cravings during the lockdown compared to the period previous to the lockdown [ 28 ].…”

Dietary Changes of Youth during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review

“…Dates under study ranged from March 2018 (prepandemic reference) to April 2022 (during pandemic), although most studies collected data during January–December 2020. More information on characteristics of the studies can be found in Table 1 [ [32] , [33] , [34] , [35] , [36] , [37] , [38] , [39] , [40] , [41] , [42] , [43] , [44] , [45] , [46] , [47] , [48] , [49] , [50] , [51] , [52] , [53] , [54] , [55] , [56] , [57] , [58] , [59] , [60] , [61] , [62] , [63] , [64] , [65] , [66] , [67] , [68] , [69] , [70] , [71] , [72] , [73] , [74] , [75] , [76] , [77] , [78] , [79] , [80] , [81] , [82] , [83] , [84] , [85] , [86] , [87] , [88] , [89] , [90] , [91] , [92] , [93] , [94] , [95] , [96] , [97] , ...…”

“… Self-reported Dietary recall Saltaouras et al. (2022) [ 89 ] 397 No info 2–18 y FFQ/questionnaire Breakfast, lunch, dinner, fast food Greece (0.89) March–May 2020 Compared with before lockdown, breakfast significantly increased. Fast food significantly decreased Parent-reported Dietary recall Schwarzová et al.…”

“…Fifty-three (79.1%) studies investigated changes in ultraprocessed foods [ [32] , [33] , [34] , [35] , [36] , [37] , [38] , [39] , [40] , [43] , [44] , [45] , [47] , [48] , [49] , [50] , [51] , [52] , [53] , [54] , [57] , [58] , [59] , [60] , [62] , [63] , [64] , [65] , 68 , 70 , 71 , [74] , [75] , [76] , [77] , [78] , [80] , [81] , [82] , [83] , [84] , [85] , [86] , [87] , [88] , [89] , [90] , [91] , [92] , [93] , [94] , [95] , [96] ]. The most studied foods within this category included “fast-food” ( n = 15), “soft drinks” ( n = 9), and “sugar-sweetened beverages” ( n = 8).…”