Attitudes and feeding practices of primary caregivers of mapuche and non-mapuche schoolchildren according to nutritional status

Abstract

This study aims to associate child feeding attitudes and practices of caregivers with the nutritional status of Mapuche and non-Mapuche children. Two hundred schoolchildren from first to fourth grade and their caregivers participated. Measurement of weight and height was performed in chil-dren; caregivers completed the Child Feeding Questionnaire and a sociodemographic characterization instrument. Fifty six percent of the children assessed were overweight or obese, with a significantly higher percentage (p≤0,001) in the Mapuche group (71.9%). Child’s BMI z-score was strongly related with perceived weight (r= 0,56 p= <0.001) and weight concern (r= 0,34, p= <0,001). The same results were found when segmenting the sample by ethnicity. The only attitude that showed differences between groups was perceived responsibility (p= 0,018), being lower in the Ma-puche group. Despite the differences according to ethnicity, this variable was not predictive of the nutritional status of the child, unlike perceived weight (β= 3,778, p<0,001) and weight concern (β= 0,944, p= 0,018). These findings reinforce the role of attitudes and practices of parents and caregivers in the nutritional status of the child, regardless of the cultural factors involved.