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. 2014 Nov:82:138-42.
doi: 10.1016/j.appet.2014.07.018. Epub 2014 Jul 18.

Food reinforcement and parental obesity predict future weight gain in non-obese adolescents

Leonard H Epstein  1 , Sonja Yokum  2 , Denise M Feda  3 , Eric Stice  2
Affiliations

Food reinforcement and parental obesity predict future weight gain in non-obese adolescents

Leonard H Epstein et al. Appetite. 2014 Nov.

Abstract

Background: Food reinforcement, the extent to which people are willing to work to earn a preferred snack food, and parental obesity are risk factors for weight gain, but there is no research comparing the predictive effects of these factors for adolescent weight gain.

Methods: 130 non-obese adolescents (M age=15.2 ± 1.0; M BMI=20.7 ± 2.0; M zBMI=0.16 ± 0.64) at differential risk for weight gain based on parental obesity completed baseline food and money reinforcement tasks, and provided zBMI data over a 2-year follow-up.

Results: The number of obese (BMI ≥ 30) parents (p=0.007) and high food reinforcement (p=0.046) were both significant independent predictors of greater zBMI increases, controlling for age, sex, parent education and minority status. Having no obese parents or being low or average in food reinforcement was associated with reductions in zBMI, but those high in food reinforcement showed larger zBMI increases (0.102) than having one obese parent (0.025) but less than having two obese parents (0.177).

Discussion: Food reinforcement and parental obesity independently predict future weight gain among adolescents. It might be fruitful for obesity prevention programs to target both high risk groups.

Keywords: Adolescent; Food reinforcement; Parental obesity; Preventing weight gain.

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Conflict of interest statement

None of the authors declared had conflicts of interest with respect to their authorship or the publication of this article.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Two-year zBMI changes predicted by the number of obese parents (left graph), and levels of food reinforcement based on ± 1 SD from the mean (right graph), controlling for age, sex, parental education and minority status. Food reinforcement values were based on ± 1 SD from the mean of food reinforcement scores. For those with no obese parents, or low or moderate in food reinforcement, the average non-obese adolescent showed a reduction in zBMI, with a reduction in −0.127 zBMI units if there were no obese parents or −0.052 zBMI units for being low in food reinforcement. Being high in food reinforcement was associated with greater zBMI increases than having one obese parent (0.102 vs 0.025 zBMI units), but less than having two obese parents (0.177).
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