Parent perceptions to promote a healthier lifestyle for their obese child

Abstract

Parents of children referred to a pediatric multidisciplinary weight-management clinic were queried regarding the importance of and their readiness to promote healthy lifestyle behaviors with their children and also regarding their confidence in their ability to adopt those changes. Among the 193 children's parents who completed a questionnaire (93.7% response), greater than 75% of respondents recognized the importance of healthy eating and physical activity, and many indicated feeling both confident and ready to make changes. Surprisingly, even among those not confident, parents also indicated they were ready to change their child's eating (p < .001). This study explores the discrepancy between parents indicating a high level of importance and readiness to promote healthy lifestyle behaviors but having less confidence that they would actually be able to enact change.