"Snacks are not food". Low-income, urban mothers' perceptions of feeding snacks to their preschool-aged children.

Snacking has become more frequent among US preschool-aged children in recent decades and represents a significant proportion of daily energy intake. Social influences on snacking among children, however, are not well understood. This qualitative research described low-income, urban mothers' perceptions of feeding snacks to their preschool-aged children using data from 7 focus groups with 32 participants. Focus group transcripts were analyzed using a constant comparative method to identify themes. Mothers described snacks as involving less preparation, balance, and sustenance than meals (Theme 1). Mothers also made reference to some snacks as not being "real food" (Theme 2). At the same time, snacks had significant hedonic value as reflected in mothers' enjoyment of those foods (Theme 3), the effectiveness of snacks to manage children's behavior (Theme 4), and the variety of restrictions that mothers placed on children's access to snacks, such as locking cabinets, offering small servings, and reducing the number of snacks in sight (Theme 5). Two overarching themes highlighted distinctions mothers made in feeding children snacks vs. meals as well as the powerful hedonic appeal of snacks for both mother and child. These observations suggest that low-income, urban mothers of preschool-aged children may perceive snacks as serving a more important role in managing children's behavior than in providing nutrition. Child feeding interventions should address non-food related ways of managing children's behavior as well as encouraging caregivers to see snacks as structured opportunities for nutrition and connecting with their children.