Children’s healthy and unhealthy food intake related to parental fear of COVID-19, family communication patterns, and parental controlling feeding practices

Abstract

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 changed the daily lives of families, including their food environments. We tested a conceptual model of potential influences on children’s dietary intake under these conditions. Methods: 310 (51% fathers) parents with children ages 5–12 were recruited for an online study. Parents completed questionnaires to measure fear of COVID-19, family communication patterns, parental controlling feeding practices, and child’s healthy and unhealthy food intake. Structural equation modeling was conducted, including a path analysis and a multi-group analysis to compare mothers and fathers. Results: Parental fear of COVID-19 was related to more conversation and conformity-oriented family communication patterns, which were associated with more parental controlling feeding practices. Conversation-oriented communication was related to less, while conformity-oriented communication was related to more unhealthy food intake by children. Conclusion: Family communication patterns play an important role in children’s dietary intake. Therefore, it may be useful to help parents adopt positive parenting approaches to influence their children’s healthy development.