| 1. |
- Abdollahi, Anna M., et al.
(författare)
-
Comparison of actigraphy-measured and parent-reported sleep in association with weight status among preschool children
- 2024
-
Ingår i: Journal of Sleep Research. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 0962-1105 .- 1365-2869. ; 33:1
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This study compared weekday and weekend actigraphy-measured and parent-reported sleep in relation to weight status among preschool-aged children. Participants were 3–6 years old preschoolers from the cross-sectional DAGIS-study with sleep data for ≥2 weekday and ≥2 weekend nights. Parents-reported sleep onset and wake-up times were gathered alongside 24 h hip-worn actigraphy. An unsupervised Hidden-Markov Model algorithm provided actigraphy-measured night time sleep without the guidance of reported sleep times. Waist-to-height ratio and age-and-sex-specific body mass index characterised weight status. Comparison of methods were assessed with consistency in quintile divisions and Spearman correlations. Associations between sleep and weight status were assessed with adjusted regression models. Participants included 638 children (49% girls) with a mean ± SD age of 4.76 ± 0.89. On weekdays, 98%–99% of actigraphy-measured and parent-reported sleep estimates were classified in the same or adjacent quintile and were strongly correlated (rs = 0.79–0.85, p < 0.001). On weekends, 84%–98% of actigraphy-measured and parent-reported sleep estimates were respectively classified and correlations were moderate to strong (rs = 0.62–0.86, p < 0.001). Compared with actigraphy-measured sleep, parent-reported sleep had consistently earlier onset, later wake-up, and greater duration. Earlier actigraphy-measured weekday sleep onset and midpoint were associated with a higher body mass index (respective β-estimates: −0.63, p < 0.01 and −0.75, p < 0.01) and waist-to-height ratio (−0.004, p = 0.03 and −0.01, p = 0.02). Though the sleep estimation methods were consistent and correlated, actigraphy measures should be favoured as they are more objective and sensitive to identifying associations between sleep timing and weight status compared with parent reports.
|
|
| 2. |
- Apelman, Linnea, et al.
(författare)
-
New child-friendly assessments of food odor identification ability, awareness and use of odor cues
- 2023
-
Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Exposure to food odors has been demonstrated to increase appetite, yet little is known about the role of olfaction in picky eating. Picky eating, the unwillingness to try new foods or eat familiar foods is common among children and linked to a low intake of fruits and vegetables. Objective: To develop two new child-friendly assessment tools, that will be put in use to investigate the relationships between olfaction, picky eating, and, fruit and vegetable liking among children. Methods: The following assessment tools were developed: 1) a test assessing fruit and vegetable odor identification (using food-grade aromas), similar to the validated U-sniff test but also quantifying the liking of the odors 2) a self-reported questionnaire tool assessing the awareness and use of odor cues in everyday life, developed from the interview guide Children’s Olfactory Behaviors in Everyday Life (COBEL). Development and evaluation were performed by conducting cognitive interviews with 20 children (aged 5-13). As a next step, 100 Swedish children aged 9-11 years are recruited to participate in data collection (April/May 2023). Data will also be collected on 1) willingness to consume, and liking of, the corresponding fruit and vegetables in a tasting session 2) general odor identification ability, using the validated U-Sniff test 3) the degree of picky eating and, liking of fruits and vegetables, using questionnaire assessments.
|
|
| 3. |
- Burnett, Alissa J., et al.
(författare)
-
The role of parental congruence in pre-school children's screen time, moderated by parental education
- 2023
-
Ingår i: Acta Paediatrica. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 0803-5253 .- 1651-2227. ; 112:7, s. 1504-1510
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- AimThis study investigated whether parental congruency regarding screen time (ST) is associated with ST in pre-school children. In addition, we investigated whether parental education levels moderated this relationship.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted in 2015–2016 in Finland (N = 688). Parents completed a questionnaire reporting their children's sedentary behaviour, their parental congruency regarding ST rules, and their educational level. Associations were examined using linear regression.ResultsChildren of parents with higher congruence regarding ST rules engaged in less ST, this was moderated by parental education levels. Children whose parents had a high level of education and parents' who strongly agree or somewhat agree on ST rules was negatively associated with ST. Furthermore, children whose parents had a medium level of education and parents' who strongly agree on ST rules was negatively associated with ST.ConclusionChildren of parents who agree on ST rules engaged in less ST compared with children of parents who do not agree on ST rules. Providing advice to parents regarding parental congruency could be the focus of future interventions.
|
|
| 4. |
- Engberg, Elina, et al.
(författare)
-
Parental Happiness Associates With the Co-occurrence of Preschool-Aged Children’s Healthy Energy Balance-Related Behaviors
- 2022
-
Ingår i: Journal of Happiness Studies. - : Springer Nature. - 1389-4978 .- 1573-7780. ; 23:4, s. 1493-1507
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We examined whether parental happiness associate with preschoolers’ healthy energy balance-related behaviors (EBRBs) and with the co-occurrence of multiple healthy EBRBs. This cross-sectional study included 647 pairs of parents (88% mothers) and children (mean age 4.7, SD 0.9 years). Parents completed the Subjective Happiness Scale. In addition, ActiGraph accelerometers measured children’s physical activity, and parents reported screen time and food consumption on behalf of their children. We defined four healthy EBRBs: meeting physical activity guidelines; meeting screen time guidelines; a higher consumption of vegetables, fruits and berries; and a lower consumption of sugary foods, treats and drinks. Parental happiness scores did not associate with children’s healthy EBRBs when each behavior was analyzed separately. However, parents with higher happiness scores were more likely to have a child with 2 or 3–4 healthy EBRBs than a child with 0–1 healthy EBRBs. To conclude, parents who are happier have children with multiple healthy EBRBs. Targeting parental wellbeing should be considered when promoting children’s healthy EBRBs.
|
|
| 5. |
- Gustafsson, Jasmine, et al.
(författare)
-
Role of early childhood educators' demographic characteristics and perceived work environment in implementation of a preschool health promotion intervention
- 2023
-
Ingår i: Archives of Public Health. - : Springer Nature. - 0778-7367 .- 2049-3258. ; 81:1
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Research has indicated that the effectiveness of intervention programs is affected by how well these programs are implemented, but key gaps remain in our understanding of the factors that promote or inhibit implementation. This study examined how demographic characteristics and perceived work environment among early childhood educators were associated with implementation outcomes of the Increased Health and Wellbeing in Preschools (DAGIS) intervention, which was conducted as a cluster randomized trial.Methods: Participants included 101 educators from 32 intervention preschool classrooms. Data were analyzed at the classroom level, as the DAGIS intervention was delivered in preschool classrooms consisting of several educators instead of individual implementers. Linear regression was used to estimate the associations of educators' demographic characteristics and perceived work environment with different aspects of implementation (i.e., dose delivered; dose received - exposure; dose received - satisfaction; and perceived quality, as well as a total sum score based on these four dimensions). Municipality was controlled in the adjusted models.Results: Findings indicated that having a higher proportion of educators with a Bachelor's or Master's degree in education within the classroom was associated with higher dose received - exposure and higher total degree of implementation, and the significance of the models was unaffected by adjustment for municipality. Moreover, having a higher proportion of educators younger than 35 years within the classroom was associated with higher dose received - exposure. However, the association was non-significant when adjusted for municipality. No other educator factor (i.e., work experience in years and perceived support from coworkers, group work, and innovative climate) predicted implementation outcomes.Conclusions: Higher educational attainment and younger age among educators at the classroom level were associated with higher scores for some of the implementation outcomes. Educators' work experience in years at the current preschool and in early childhood education, support from coworkers, group work, and innovative climate were not significantly associated with any implementation outcomes. Future research should explore ways to improve educators' implementation of interventions aimed at promoting children's health behaviors.
|
|
| 6. |
- Kokkonen, Juuli-Mari, et al.
(författare)
-
Associations between Parent–Child Nature Visits and Sleep, Physical Activity and Weight Status among Finnish 3–6-Year-Olds
- 2021
-
Ingår i: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. - : MDPI. - 1661-7827 .- 1660-4601. ; 18:23
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Nature visits and nature exposure have been shown to be favorably associated with children’s health and development, but the research regarding their associations with children’s lifestyle habits is limited. The current study aimed to investigate the associations between the frequency of parent–child nature visits and sleep, moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and weight status among three- to six-year-old Finnish preschoolers. Parents and their children (n = 864) participated in a cross-sectional DAGIS (increased health and wellbeing in preschools) study, which was conducted between 2015 and 2016 in Finland. In total, 798 parents answered a questionnaire on the frequency of parent–child nature visits, which also included questions on sociodemographic factors and their children’s sleep habits. Parents also reported children’s bedtimes and wake-up times and children wore an accelerometer for seven days. Trained researchers measured children’s weight and height. Linear and logistic regression analyses were conducted. More frequent parent–child nature visits were associated with children’s longer sleep duration at night, higher amounts of MVPA outside preschool time and, among girls, good sleep consistency. The frequency of parent–child nature visits was not significantly associated with whether children were overweight or obese or not. Promoting parent–child nature visits could be a cost-effective way to increase young children’s MVPA and enhance night-time sleep.
|
|
| 7. |
|
|
| 8. |
- Lehto, Reetta, et al.
(författare)
-
Effects of the DAGIS randomized controlled trial on home environment and children's food consumption according to the degree of implementation
- 2022
-
Ingår i: BMC Public Health. - : BioMed Central (BMC). - 1471-2458. ; 22:1
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background Combining process evaluation data with effectiveness data and examining the possible mediators of intervention effects elicits valuable knowledge about how and for whom these interventions are effective. The aim of this study was to examine whether the parental degree of implementation (DOI) of a home-involving preschool intervention affected children's food consumption via home mediators. Methods The five-month Increased Health and Wellbeing in Preschools (DAGIS) intervention involved 476 participating children aged 3-6 years and was conducted in 2017-2018. Parents reported children's food consumption (g/day) outside childcare hours, the availability of foods at home, role modelling of food consumption, and the norms related to food consumption. In addition, parents reported the extent to which they had implemented the intervention program at home. Mediation analyses were conducted to examine the effect of low and high DOI compared to control group on the change in children's consumption of fruit and vegetables (FV), sugary everyday foods, sugary treats, and sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) via food availability in the home, parental role modelling and parental norms. Results Compared to the control group, there was a direct effect of a high DOI on diminishing consumption of SSB (B -27.71, 95% CI -49.05, -4.80). No indirect effects were detected. In the high DOI group, a change in parental norm was associated with increased FV consumption showing an indirect effect (B 4.31, 95% CI 0.23, 10.59). In the low DOI group, there was an indirect effect via decreased food availability leading to decreased sugary everyday food consumption (B -2.17, 95% CI -5.09, -0.09). Conclusions Combining process evaluation and effectiveness data revealed a decrease in children's SSB consumption only in the high DOI group, as well as indirect effects on children's consumption of FV and sugary everyday foods. In order to gain more intervention effects, further studies are required in order to examine parental facilitators and barriers to the implementation of interventions and how to impact effectively the determinants of the targeted behavior.
|
|
| 9. |
- Leppänen, Marja H., et al.
(författare)
-
Body Mass Index, Physical Activity, and Body Image in Adolescents
- 2022
-
Ingår i: Children. - : MDPI. - 2227-9067. ; 9:2
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Body image dissatisfaction is a concern for adolescents’ mental and physical well-being, and the role of body mass index (BMI) and physical activity (PA) in it is still unclear. This study investigates the associations of BMI and PA with body image, separately for boys and girls, in a large sample of Finnish adolescents. We also examine the associations of BMI with body image in varying PA levels. A total of 10,496 adolescents (girls 52.6%) were included in the analyses. Body image was assessed using a pictorial tool, and categorized as wishing for a smaller body, being satisfied, and wishing for a bigger body. BMI (kg/m2) was categorized as thin, normal weight, and overweight/obese. Self-reported PA was divided into three similar-sized categories as low, moderate, and high PA levels. Adjusted ordinal regression analyses were conducted. Our results show that adolescents with thinness had higher odds of wishing for a bigger body compared to their normal-weight peers, while adolescents with overweight/obesity had smaller odds of wishing for a bigger body. Adolescents in low and middle PA levels had lower odds of wishing for a bigger body compared to adolescents in the high PA level. Yet, the PA level modified the associations between BMI and body image, especially in adolescents with thinness and more so in girls than in boys. These findings highlight the need to pay attention to healthy weight gain and PA in adolescents to support their body image satisfaction.
|
|
| 10. |
- Leppänen, Marja H., et al.
(författare)
-
Comparing estimates of physical activity in children across different cut-points and the associations with weight status
- 2022
-
Ingår i: Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 0905-7188 .- 1600-0838. ; 32:6, s. 971-983
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This study aimed to compare sedentary time (SED) and intensity-specific physical activity (PA) estimates and the associations of SED and PA with body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC) using three different sets of cut-points in preschool-aged children. A total of 751 children (4.7 ± 0.9 years, boys 52.7%) wore an ActiGraph GT3X+BT accelerometer on their hip for 7 days (24 h). Euclidean norm −1 G with negative values rounded to zero (ENMO) and activity counts from vertical axis (VACounts) and vector magnitude (VMCounts) were derived. Estimates of SED and light, moderate, vigorous, and moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) were calculated for commonly used cut-points by Hildebrand et al., Butte et al., and Evenson et al. Furthermore, the prevalence of meeting the PA recommendation, 180 min/day of which at least 60 min/day being MVPA, were assessed for the cut-points. Multilevel mixed analysis was used to examine associations of SED and PA with BMI and WC. In accordance with the results, SED and PA intensity estimates differed largely across cut-points (i.e., SED = 22–341 min/day; light PA = 52–257 min/day; moderate PA = 5–18 min/day; vigorous PA = 7–17 min/day; MVPA = 13–35 min/day), and the prevalence of children meeting the PA recommendation varied from 4% to 70%. Associations of SED and PA with BMI or WC varied between the cut-points. Our results indicate that SED and PA estimates in preschool-aged children between studies using these cut-points are poorly comparable. Methods facilitating accelerometer-derived PA estimate comparison between studies are highly warranted.
|
|
