Parental Perceptions of Childhood Overweight in the Mexican American Population: An Integrative Review

Abstract

The prevalence of overweight in Mexican American children has been increasing at a steady rate over the past few years. People of Mexican origin make up the largest proportion of the Hispanic population, which has been reported by the U.S. Census Bureau to be the fastest growing ethnic group in the United States. The purpose of this integrative review was to examine and summarize the current research on parental perceptions of childhood overweight in the Mexican American population. Four main themes evolved as a result of the data analysis: parental perception of overweight, parental practices, household food security status, and acculturation. School nurses are in a position to influence children in improving their nutritional status and increasing their physical activity. Understanding cultural values and beliefs regarding health status and overweight of Mexican American families should be a priority for school nurses. Identifying food-related parenting styles and the concept of acculturation should also be considered prior to incorporating relevant interventions in the school setting.

Consumption of soda and other sugar-sweetened beverages by 2-year-olds: findings from a population-based survey

“…Soda and other high-fat foods may symbolize economic success and improved circumstances (42) for recent Mexican immigrants with little recognition of adverse health effects associated with overweight infants (41) . Further qualitative research should be undertaken to explore acculturation, influences of extended family members on infant diet and cultural perception of healthy infant weight, which have previously been identified as major factors contributing to disparate rates of overweight among Mexican-American children (43,44) . To the authors' knowledge, the present study is the first one to partition the risk factors unique to soda, FDK and SSB among a population-based sample of 2-year-olds.…”

BMI and sociodemographic correlates of body image perception and attitudes in school-aged children

“…Perceptions of current body image were positively correlated only among normal-weight children. This may be because body image perceptions reflect less accurately actual status among overweight or thin children than they do among children of normal weight (17)(18)(19)(20) . Therefore, discordant misperceptions of child's actual weight between mothers and their thin or heavy children may result in attenuated mother-child correlations.…”

Low Income, Mexican Mothers’ Perception of Their Infants’ Weight Status and Beliefs About Their Foods and Physical Activity

“…Governments have acknowledged the importance of childhood and adult obesity and intervention plans have been implemented at schools and at the community level [8,9]. It has also been recommended that understanding how the general community perceives childhood obesity is essential for engaging families in community educational programs [10,11]. Research on childhood overweight, specifically on the perception of childhood obesity among Mexican-American, is limited [11] and only a handful of studies has explored the perception of childhood obesity in Mexico.…”

“…Studies conducted in Mexico found that more than 45% of Mexican physicians underestimate children's weight status; underestimating the weight of girls was associated with negative attitudes toward the obese child and with the beliefs of personal responsibility about the causes of obesity [13]. Among the Mexican-American population, a recent review indicates that a large percentage of parents do not perceive their children to be overweight and are not concerned about health risks [11]. Birch suggested, ''that child feeding practices play a causal role in the development of individual differences in the controls of food intake and perhaps in the etiology of problems of energy balance, specially childhood obesity'' [14], and mothers' attitudes toward their child's feeding might be an important factor in developing likeness or rejection towards certain foods [14][15][16].…”

“…It has also been recommended that understanding how the general community perceives childhood obesity is essential for engaging families in community educational programs [10,11]. Research on childhood overweight, specifically on the perception of childhood obesity among Mexican-American, is limited [11] and only a handful of studies has explored the perception of childhood obesity in Mexico. They have been limited to health professionals and teachers [12,13].…”