Better quality of mother-child interaction at 4 years of age decreases emotional overeating in IUGR girls.
Title | Better quality of mother-child interaction at 4 years of age decreases emotional overeating in IUGR girls. |
Publication Type | Journal Article |
Year of Publication | 2014 |
Authors | Escobar RS, O'Donnell KA, Colalillo S, Pawlby S, Steiner M, Meaney MJ, Levitan RD, Silveira PPelufo |
Corporate Authors | MAVAN Study Team |
Journal | Appetite |
Volume | 81 |
Pagination | 337-42 |
Date Published | 2014 Oct |
ISSN | 1095-8304 |
Keywords | Birth Weight, Body Mass Index, Child, Child Behavior, Child, Preschool, Emotions, Feeding Behavior, Female, Fetal Growth Retardation, Food, Organic, Humans, Hyperphagia, Male, Mother-Child Relations, Obesity, Prospective Studies, Surveys and Questionnaires |
Abstract | BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: While most "fetal programming" area focused on metabolic disease, intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) is also associated with a preference for less healthy food. Post-natal factors such as strained maternal-child interactions are equally related to obesogenic eating behaviors. We investigated if IUGR and the quality of the mother/child relationship affect emotional overeating in children.SUBJECTS/METHODS: Participants were 196 children from a prospective birth cohort (the MAVAN project). As part of the protocol at 4 years of age, mothers completed the Children Eating Behavior Questionnaire (CEBQ) and mother-child interactions were scored during a structured task. A GLM adjusted for BMI examined the interaction between the "Atmosphere" score (ATM) task, sex and IUGR on the emotional over-eating domain of the CEBQ.RESULTS: There was a significant interaction of BWR vs. sex vs. ATM (P = .02), with no effects of IUGR, sex or ATM. The model was significant for girls with low ATM scores (B = -2.035, P = .014), but not for girls with high (P = 0.94) or boys with high (P = .27) or low (P = .19) ATM scores. Only in IUGR girls, 48 months emotional over-eating correlated with BMI at that age (r = 0.560, P = 0.013) and predicted BMI in the subsequent years (r = 0.654, P = 0.006 at 60 months and r = 0.750, P = 0.005 at 72 months).CONCLUSIONS: IUGR and exposure to a negative emotional atmosphere during maternal-child interactions predicted emotional overeating in girls but not in boys. The quality of mother-infant interaction may be an important target for interventions to prevent emotional overeating and overweight in early development, particularly in girls with a history of IUGR. |
DOI | 10.1016/j.appet.2014.06.107 |
Alternate Journal | Appetite |
PubMed ID | 25014742 |
Grant List | / / Canadian Institutes of Health Research / Canada |