IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v18y2021i21p11293-d666129.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Changing the Home Food Environment: Parents’ Perspectives Four Years after Starting Obesity Treatment for Their Preschool Aged Child

Author

Listed:
  • Paulina Nowicka

    (Department of Food Studies Nutrition and Dietetics, Uppsala University, 752 37 Uppsala, Sweden
    Division of Pediatrics, Department of Clinical Science, Intervention and Technology, Karolinska Institute, 141 57 Huddinge, Sweden)

  • Johan Keres

    (Dietitian Unit, Region Sörmland, 611 88 Nyköping, Sweden)

  • Anna Ek

    (Division of Pediatrics, Department of Clinical Science, Intervention and Technology, Karolinska Institute, 141 57 Huddinge, Sweden)

  • Karin Nordin

    (Division of Pediatrics, Department of Clinical Science, Intervention and Technology, Karolinska Institute, 141 57 Huddinge, Sweden)

  • Pernilla Sandvik

    (Department of Food Studies Nutrition and Dietetics, Uppsala University, 752 37 Uppsala, Sweden)

Abstract

Changing the home food environment is key to childhood obesity treatment. However, new challenges arise as the child grows older. This study investigates parents’ views on the longer-term management of the home food environment, 4 years after starting obesity treatment for their preschool-aged child. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 33 parents (85% mothers, 48% with a university degree) of 33 children (mean age 9.3 (SD 0.7), 46% girls) from Sweden. The interviews were analyzed using thematic analysis. Two main themes were developed. Making changes in the home food environment illustrates the types of changes families make over time in relation to child development. It consists of three subthemes: covert changes, overt changes and child-directed changes. The second theme, an ongoing negotiation , captures parents’ experiences of managing the home food environment as a continuous process of balancing and recalibrating in relation to present challenges and concerns about the future. It includes three subthemes: concern and care, two steps forward one back and maintaining everyday balance. Managing the home food environment is a constant process affected by everyday life, parents’ strategies and the child’s development. Our findings can strengthen childhood obesity treatment and help prepare parents for challenges that lie ahead.

Suggested Citation

  • Paulina Nowicka & Johan Keres & Anna Ek & Karin Nordin & Pernilla Sandvik, 2021. "Changing the Home Food Environment: Parents’ Perspectives Four Years after Starting Obesity Treatment for Their Preschool Aged Child," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(21), pages 1-13, October.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:21:p:11293-:d:666129
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/21/11293/pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/21/11293/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Eli, Karin & Howell, Kyndal & Fisher, Philip A. & Nowicka, Paulina, 2016. "A question of balance: Explaining differences between parental and grandparental perspectives on preschoolers' feeding and physical activity," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 154(C), pages 28-35.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Lydia G. Emm-Collison & Sarah Lewis & Thomas Reid & Joe Matthews & Simon J. Sebire & Janice L. Thompson & Russell Jago, 2019. "Physical Activity during the School Holidays: Parent Perceptions and Practical Considerations," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(10), pages 1-14, May.
    2. Parrish, Sabine & Lavis, Anna & Potter, Caroline M. & Ulijaszek, Stanley & Nowicka, Paulina & Eli, Karin, 2022. "How active can preschoolers be at home? Parents' and grandparents' perceptions of children's day-to-day activity, with implications for physical activity policy," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 292(C).
    3. Gülcan Bektas & Femke Boelsma & Vivianne E. Baur & Jacob C. Seidell & S. Coosje Dijkstra, 2020. "Parental Perspectives and Experiences in Relation to Lifestyle-Related Practices in the First Two Years of a Child’s Life: A Qualitative Study in a Disadvantaged Neighborhood in The Netherlands," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(16), pages 1-17, August.
    4. Wang, Sophie Xuefei & Bansak, Cynthia, 2022. "Are Grandparents a Good Substitute for Parents as the Primary Caregiver? The Impact of Grandparents on Children's Academic Performance," GLO Discussion Paper Series 1100, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    5. Wang, Sophie Xuefei & Bansak, Cynthia, 2024. "Are grandparents a good substitute for parents as the primary caregiver? The impact of grandparents on Children's academic performance," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    6. Visser, Sanne Siete & Haisma, Hinke, 2021. "Fulfilling food practices: Applying the capability approach to ethnographic research in the Northern Netherlands," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 272(C).
    7. Jingying He & Jia Wang, 2021. "When Does It Matter? The Effect of Three-generational Household Arrangement on Children’s Well-Being across Developmental Stages," Child Indicators Research, Springer;The International Society of Child Indicators (ISCI), vol. 14(6), pages 2471-2493, December.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:21:p:11293-:d:666129. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.