Perceptions of Parental Support for Physical Activity and Healthy Eating among School-age Children During COVID-19 pandemic

Nan Dou; Alysse J Kowalski; Hannah Lane; Ross Hatton; Maureen M Black; Erin R Hager

Perceptions of Parental Support for Physical Activity and Healthy Eating among School-age Children During COVID-19 pandemic

J Healthy Eat Act Living. 2023 Nov 1;3(2):76-99. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Nan Dou¹, Alysse J Kowalski¹, Hannah Lane², Ross Hatton³, Maureen M Black⁴, Erin R Hager¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Population, Family and Reproductive Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N Wolfe St, Baltimore, MD, USA 21205.
² Department of Population Health Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine, USA.
³ Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N Wolfe St, Baltimore, MD, USA 21205.
⁴ Department of Pediatrics, University of Maryland School of Medicine, USA.

PMID: 38077293
PMCID: PMC10699858

Abstract

Family routines play a key role in promoting child health behaviors. This study 1) describes changes in children's perceptions of physical activity (PA) and healthy eating family routines across three time points: pre-pandemic (2017-2020), early pandemic (2020), and mid-pandemic (2021); and 2) explores how sex, age, and pandemic-related economic stressors relate to changes. Children's perceptions of family routines were assessed using four subscales adapted from the Comprehensive Home Environment Survey: PA-policies, Diet-policies, Diet-rules, and PA-Diet-role-model. Linear mixed models assessed changes in perceptions and associated factors (child age and sex; caregiver(s) job loss during pandemic). Children (N=277) were aged 9.3-15.5y at pandemic onset (March 2020), dichotomized by median age (12.1y) as younger and older. Children's perceptions of PA-policies (pre-pandemic mean=15.4) and Diet-policies (pre-pandemic mean=26.3) increased significantly from pre- to early (b=1.2 and 2.3, respectively) and mid-pandemic (b=1.0 and 1.2, respectively). Diet-rules (pre-pandemic mean=10.8) decreased significantly from pre- to early (b=-1.1) and mid-pandemic (b=-2.0), with no PA-Diet-role-model changes. Younger children had a greater increase in perceived PA-policies and Diet-policies across the pandemic. Females (59.9%) had a greater decrease in perceived Diet-rules across the pandemic and less increase in Diet-policies and PA-Diet-role-model from pre- to early pandemic. Children whose caregiver(s) lost employment (51.8%) perceived a greater increase in PA-policies. Overall, children reported increased parental policies to support PA and healthy eating and decreased parental rules for diet during the pandemic. Future research is needed to understand how changes in family routines relate to PA and healthy eating behaviors.

Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic policies; Child; Family routines; Health disparities; Healthy eating; Perceptions; Physical activity; adolescents.

Abstract

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