Parents’ Views on Engaging Families of Middle School Students in Obesity Prevention and Control in a Multiethnic Population

Abstract

IntroductionOverweight and obesity remain significant public health risks for youth in the United States, particularly among racial/ethnic minority groups. Efforts at obesity prevention and control have targeted youth and family members in diverse settings. Although involving parents in obesity prevention programs for youth may improve the potential of these programs, less is known about parents’ preferred methods of engagement, especially among racial/ethnic minority parents and parents whose primary language is not English. In this qualitative study, parents of middle-school–aged children were asked how best to engage their children in obesity prevention and control efforts.MethodsWe recruited 38 parents whose children attended Los Angeles middle schools to participate in focus groups. Two English-language focus groups with 14 parents of different racial/ethnic backgrounds and 2 Spanish language groups with 24 Latino parents were conducted from 2010 through 2011. We analyzed focus group transcripts by using content analysis using inductive and deductive techniques.ResultsFindings from focus groups confirmed that parents want to help their children avoid obesity but feel constrained in their ability to take action. Participants identified an overarching desire to become better parents as a potential incentive to engage in obesity prevention efforts. Parents advocated for family-focused approaches in obesity prevention programs, including family sports leagues and cooking classes. Most findings were consistent between language groups, but parents in the Spanish language groups cited language-related barriers.ConclusionThe development and testing of simple programs that are sustainable, community-based, and family-focused may empower families to address obesity prevention and control.

¡Miranos! (Look at Us! We Are Healthy!)

“…Reasons for low parent participation include parents' misconceptions about the parent program's purpose, limitations to acquiring transportation and child care, and work schedule and time conflicts. Concerns with program design such as lack of rewards/incentives, language barriers, and lack of visual aids can also decrease parent participation among minority parent groups (Cowgill et al, 2014;Garcia-Dominic et al, 2010). However, our study capitalized on lessons learned in previous studies by offering multiple meeting times during the week in English and Spanish, providing visual aids with sessions, and advertising incentives.…”

Factors Influencing Parental Engagement in an Early Childhood Obesity Prevention Program Implemented at Scale: The Infant Program

“…Parents and carers play a significant role in influencing the health and development of their children, and supporting parents to develop their knowledge, skills and confidence regarding child health and development is considered an important public health strategy [ 9 , 10 , 11 ]. Family-based health services are well placed to deliver preventive interventions in the form of group-based programs and alternative modalities [ 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 ].…”

“…Studies of the enablers and barriers to engagement have most frequently been conducted in the context of children with behavioural [ 13 , 25 , 30 , 32 ], mental health [ 20 ], or weight management issues [ 10 , 16 , 17 , 33 , 38 ], or children who have complex medical concerns [ 9 ] or vulnerable families [ 29 ]. Studies investigating first-time parents have focused on neonatal issues such as prematurity and neo-natal follow-up [ 18 ], home visitation programs [ 26 , 27 ], randomised controlled trials [ 39 , 40 ], and the perspectives of researchers [ 41 ].…”

Effects of the “MAMI Deporte®” Family Sports Program on Parents’ Motivation towards Sport Participation: A Randomized Controlled Intervention

“…Previous research on PA to date has focused mainly on analyzing support from parents for PA on their children's levels of PA through observational [7][8][9][10] and intervention [11,12] methodologies. To the best of our knowledge, few studies have analyzed the effect that family-based PA interventions could have on parents.…”