BackHome
Refresh: OffView Personal Schedule
Session Summary
Share...

Direct link:

3-231 - The Role of Emotion in Early Childhood Eating Behaviors

Sat, March 23, 4:15 to 5:45pm, Baltimore Convention Center, Floor: Level 3, Room 350

Session Type: Paper Symposium

Integrative Statement

Eating behaviors begin to develop very early in the lifespan, track consistently through life, and impact health. Nutrition education and obesity prevention programs do not generally address child or parent short- or long-term emotional state. However, in this symposium, we will show that parent and child emotions play various roles in eating behavior development in early childhood. The first paper will demonstrate how preschooler tendency to eat in response to negative emotions accelerates weight gain over time. The second paper will examine how maternal depression predicts poorer diet quality among minority preschoolers. Finally, the last two papers will explore how the emotional reaction parents have to preschoolers’ and toddlers’ behaviors at the dinner table influences their feeding behavior, which, in turn, influences children’s eating behaviors. The studies featured in this symposium draw from various diverse populations and a range of methodologies: longitudinal designs, observational studies, and mediation analyses. The goal of this symposium is to inspire attendees to consider parent and child long and short-term emotional states when seeking to understand or develop programs to promote healthy eating behavior development in early childhood.

Sub Unit

Chairs

Individual Presentations