Parents' beliefs about cholesterol and its effects on their children.

A random sample of parents of primary grade children (N = 500) was obtained from two higher socioeconomic-status suburban elementary schools. The respondents (n = 277) were well educated (92% attended or graduated from college), white (92%), primarily higher in socioeconomic status (79% earned more than $50,000/year), and female (70%). Two-thirds of the parents believed that all elementary school children should have their cholesterol levels checked, 70% believed high cholesterol in children was serious, yet only 21% believed their child would develop a high cholesterol level. To control their children's cholesterol level, the majority of parents (73%) made lifestyle changes for their children since the majority believed high cholesterol levels would clog arteries (95%) and cause heart disease (90%). Parents most often received their information on cholesterol from magazines (73%), newspapers (62%), and physicians (52%).