Parent Perceptions of Weight Status: Impact of a Pilot Intervention

Parent Perceptions of Weight Status: Impact of a Pilot Intervention to Enhance Awareness of Risk for Overweight Parents and Their Children

This pilot study is a randomized controlled trial with an embedded cross sectional study exploring parental perceptions of their weight status and how it affects their perceptions of their child's weight status. This study uses an educational intervention in which parents are informed of their actual weight status and how it affects their child's health. We will study the effect of this intervention on the parent's perceptions of and level of concern for their own and their child's weight status.

Pediatric obesity has tripled in the past 20 years. Obesity prevention early in life is important and parental participation is essential. Parents must recognize overweight in their child so health providers may engage them in a dialogue to change their child's diet and physical activity patterns, yet a large proportion of parents do not recognize that their child is overweight. Parents' misperception of their overweight child's weight status presents a barrier to treating obesity.

This pilot study is a randomized controlled trial with an embedded cross sectional study exploring parental perceptions of their weight status and how it affects their perceptions of their child's weight status. This study uses an educational intervention in which parents are informed of their actual weight status and how it affects their child's health. We will study the effect of this intervention on the parent's perceptions of and level of concern for their own and their child's weight status.

Our goal is to develop a primary care intervention that will enhance parental perceptions of overweight and motivation to make changes for their family. Pilot data collected here will support an R21 Exploratory/Developmental Clinical Research Grant in Obesity or a Centers for Disease Control (CDC) or Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJ) grant submission.

Inclusion Criteria:

1. Boys and girls ages 3 to 13 years old presenting with at least one biological parent for a routine health maintenance exam (WCC) at the Child Health Continuity Clinic will be eligible. Parents must be able and willing to have their height and weight measured at the clinic

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Child has previously been referred to a nutritionist/dietician or specialized clinic/program for weight management
2. Child is currently being treated for failure to thrive
3. Child is on parenteral nutrition
4. Child is on chronic systemic steroid therapy
5. Child is non-mobile/wheelchair bound
6. The family has previously enrolled into the study with a prior sibling
7. Family is unable to be contacted at home
8. Presenting parent cannot speak and read English or Spanish at at least a 5th grade level