Brittany R Schuler1, Katherine W Bauer2, Julie C Lumeng2,3,4, Katherine Rosenblum3,5, Michael Clark6, Alison L Miller3,7. 1. Temple University, School of Social Work, College of Public Health, 1301 Cecil B. Moore Ave, Ritter Annex 549, Philadelphia, PA 19122, United States. 2. Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor, MI. 3. Center for Human Growth and Development, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI. 4. Department of Pediatrics, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI. 5. Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI. 6. Consulting for Statistics, Computing, and Analytics Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI. 7. Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor, MI.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Structured, well-organized mealtime routines can provide many physical and mental health benefits for children. Poverty and food insecurity (FI) are socioeconomic risk factors for less effective mealtime routines. However, the specific mechanisms by which these social factors may negatively impact mealtime structure are not well-understood. We test whether poverty and FI are associated with parenting factors (mental health and parent disciplinary practices), and whether these parenting factors in turn associate with less mealtime structure. METHODS: Low-income families (N = 270), recruited when children were approximately 6-years-old (wave 1), were followed for 2 years (wave 2). Socioeconomic and parenting factors were assessed at W1 via parent-report. Associations of poverty and FI with two measures of mealtime structure (parent-reported and observed mealtime structure at wave 1 and wave 2), mediated by parent factors (depressive symptoms, lax and overreactive parent disciplinary practices) were assessed in separate path analyses. RESULTS: The association between higher depth of poverty and less mealtime structure in early childhood was mediated by greater parent depressive symptoms. FI was associated with less mealtime structure in early childhood, mediated by overreactive parenting, and with less mealtime structure in early and mid-childhood, mediated by lax parenting. CONCLUSION: Poverty and food insecurity may contribute to suboptimal parent disciplinary practices and poor parent mental health, which may reduce mealtime structure for children. Addressing parent mental health and parent disciplinary practices in the context of socioeconomic adversity may be one way in which interventions can improve mealtime structure for low-income families.
OBJECTIVE: Structured, well-organized mealtime routines can provide many physical and mental health benefits for children. Poverty and food insecurity (FI) are socioeconomic risk factors for less effective mealtime routines. However, the specific mechanisms by which these social factors may negatively impact mealtime structure are not well-understood. We test whether poverty and FI are associated with parenting factors (mental health and parent disciplinary practices), and whether these parenting factors in turn associate with less mealtime structure. METHODS: Low-income families (N = 270), recruited when children were approximately 6-years-old (wave 1), were followed for 2 years (wave 2). Socioeconomic and parenting factors were assessed at W1 via parent-report. Associations of poverty and FI with two measures of mealtime structure (parent-reported and observed mealtime structure at wave 1 and wave 2), mediated by parent factors (depressive symptoms, lax and overreactive parent disciplinary practices) were assessed in separate path analyses. RESULTS: The association between higher depth of poverty and less mealtime structure in early childhood was mediated by greater parent depressive symptoms. FI was associated with less mealtime structure in early childhood, mediated by overreactive parenting, and with less mealtime structure in early and mid-childhood, mediated by lax parenting. CONCLUSION: Poverty and food insecurity may contribute to suboptimal parent disciplinary practices and poor parent mental health, which may reduce mealtime structure for children. Addressing parent mental health and parent disciplinary practices in the context of socioeconomic adversity may be one way in which interventions can improve mealtime structure for low-income families.
Entities:
Keywords:
children; depressive symptoms; family meals; parenting; socioeconomic status
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