TY - JOUR
T1 - Maternal sensitivity in early childhood and body mass index in adolescence
T2 - A population-based study on the role of self-regulation as a mediator
AU - Bravo, Patricia
AU - Cárcamo, Rodrigo
AU - Santos, Susana
AU - Ringoot, Ank
AU - van IJzendoorn, Marinus H
AU - Hillegers, Manon H J
AU - Jansen, Pauline W
N1 - Copyright © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.
PY - 2023/3/1
Y1 - 2023/3/1
N2 - Maternal sensitivity has been implicated in various aspects of child health and development, including overweight. However, long-term effects, the role of paternal sensitivity and the explanatory pathways are unclear. This study examined whether maternal sensitivity in early childhood is prospectively associated with adolescent body mass index and whether children's self-regulation mediates this relation. Data from 540 children and their mothers were available from a large cohort study in the Netherlands. Maternal sensitivity was assessed at child ages 1, 3, and at 4 years paternal sensitivity was also included. Children's self-regulation skills were observed at age 3, eating behaviour was assessed at 10 years, and child BMI was measured at 13 years. Longitudinal structural equation modelling was applied. The cross-sectional association between maternal sensitivity and child self-regulation was significant, while lower levels of self-regulation and higher levels of food responsiveness and restrained eating predicted a higher child BMI at 13 years. Furthermore, a direct association of paternal sensitivity at 4 years with BMI at 13 years was found, but only in girls. Maternal sensitivity was not directly associated with child BMI after adjusting for covariates. Our findings showed the importance of self-regulation in the early years for subsequent weight development. Nevertheless, as self-regulation could not explain the relationship between parenting and child weight, research should focus on the contribution of other contextual factors, such as feeding styles and the social environment, to this relationship.
AB - Maternal sensitivity has been implicated in various aspects of child health and development, including overweight. However, long-term effects, the role of paternal sensitivity and the explanatory pathways are unclear. This study examined whether maternal sensitivity in early childhood is prospectively associated with adolescent body mass index and whether children's self-regulation mediates this relation. Data from 540 children and their mothers were available from a large cohort study in the Netherlands. Maternal sensitivity was assessed at child ages 1, 3, and at 4 years paternal sensitivity was also included. Children's self-regulation skills were observed at age 3, eating behaviour was assessed at 10 years, and child BMI was measured at 13 years. Longitudinal structural equation modelling was applied. The cross-sectional association between maternal sensitivity and child self-regulation was significant, while lower levels of self-regulation and higher levels of food responsiveness and restrained eating predicted a higher child BMI at 13 years. Furthermore, a direct association of paternal sensitivity at 4 years with BMI at 13 years was found, but only in girls. Maternal sensitivity was not directly associated with child BMI after adjusting for covariates. Our findings showed the importance of self-regulation in the early years for subsequent weight development. Nevertheless, as self-regulation could not explain the relationship between parenting and child weight, research should focus on the contribution of other contextual factors, such as feeding styles and the social environment, to this relationship.
KW - Child body mass index
KW - Maternal sensitivity
KW - Paternal sensitivity
KW - Self-regulation
KW - Sex differences
U2 - 10.1016/j.appet.2022.106418
DO - 10.1016/j.appet.2022.106418
M3 - Article
C2 - 36521650
SN - 0195-6663
VL - 182
JO - Appetite
JF - Appetite
M1 - 106418
ER -