Beverage intake in low-income parent–child dyads

Abstract

Beverage consumption adds to daily energy intake and often exceeds the recommended amount for discretionary energy. Previous research has shown that children are consuming sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) in greater frequency and the relationship between parent–child dyads in beverage consumption is meaningful due to the parental influence on the development of beverage consumption behaviors. In particular, low-income families are at greater risk for obesity and higher levels of SSB consumption. The current investigation assessed habitual beverage intake among low-income parent–child dyads (N = 95) with children between the ages of 9–17 years. The sample (46% African American; 45% Caucasian) had a mean body mass index (BMI) for the parents of 31.8 ± 8.9 kg/m², while the mean BMI percentile for age and gender for the children was 70.3 ± 31.3. Both parents and children consumed fewer nutrient-dense beverages and more energy-dense beverages than the recommended amount. The mean daily energy intake from beverages was 451 ± 236 kcal for the parents and 457 ± 237 kcal for the children. Correlations between parent–child dyad intake was also evident, identifying parents as potential role models and gatekeepers of the home food environment. Future interventions to prevent childhood obesity in low-income populations should address beverage intake, particularly SSB consumption, and determine the degree to which this behavior is learned behavior in the home.

Introduction

Obesity has become an epidemic in the United States (US) (Caballero, 2007), with more than 66% of adults (Hedley et al., 2004) and 32% of children (Ogden, Carroll, & Flegal, 2008) considered overweight or obese. High intake of nutrient-poor, energy-dense beverages has likely contributed. Currently, US adults ages 19 years and older consume an average of 394 kcal per day as beverages and children consume an average of 400 kcal per day as beverages (NCI, 2010). Among children (2–18 years) sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) are the largest contributor to “empty calories” (Reedy & Krebs-Smith, 2010). In response, the Surgeon General's Vision for a Healthy and Fit Nation 2010 it is recommended that individuals drink more water, low-fat and non-fat dairy foods, and less sodas and juices with added sugars (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2010).

In a large sample of children and adolescents, higher consumption of SSB was related to poor dietary choices such as fast food meal intake (Collison et al., 2010). Furthermore, racially- and socioeconomically- diverse children consume greater amounts of SSB (Wang, Bleich, & Gortmaker, 2008), and children that consumed more SSB were more likely to be overweight (Forshee and Storey, 2003, Lim et al., 2009). The development of beverage intake patterns, specifically related to dairy and calcium intake, has been shown to be correlated between parent child dyads in pre-school children (Hoerr, Nicklas, Franklin, & Liu, 2009).

Therefore, the purpose of this investigation is to explore the patterns of beverage intake for parents and children (ages 9–17 years), and the relationship between parent–child dyad consumption, in a low-income population. Specifically, differences in beverage consumption between this low-income population and recommended beverage intake guidelines will be assessed, and beverage intake of parent–child dyads will be evaluated.