Influences of Dietary Intakes of Children

Availability

• Although Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health asserts, "Child-parent dietary resemblance in the U.S. is relatively weak," many family factors do influence how your child views food and shape her preferences. As the primary shopper, you control what kinds of food are available in your home; and since children tend to prefer foods they know, your store choices influence what your child chooses to eat. Home finances, however determine which foods are economically feasible and available for a family, affecting familiarity with different types of food depending on socioeconomic status.

Prohibitions and Rewards

• Some parents prohibit certain foods making the forbidden seem more desirable and promoting overindulgence. Conversely, using food as a reward can make the food seem less desirable. If you have to bribe your child to eat a certain food, it creates a resistance to eating that food when given the choice. As your children become independent in eating away from home, the attitudes they have learned toward food at home influences their choices toward nutritious foods or junk food that affects their overall health and weight for a lifetime.

Eating Away from Home

• As more families depend on mothers as a second income, more children rely on school and daycare-provided meals, which The National Institute of Health reports are lacking in nutritional value in spite of official dietary requirements. Additionally, school vending machines stock high-fat, high-sugar food as an alternative to healthier choices. In addition, busy moms often resort to convenience of ready-made foods and eating out at fast food restaurants with low nutrition. Inflated package and portion sizes skew your child̵7;s notion of how much food is enough contributing to overeating habits and weight gain. The National Academy of Science's book, ̶0;Food Marketing to Children and Youth: Threat or Opportunity?" suggests that the more frequently families eat home-prepared, sit-down family meals, the healthier a child̵7;s pattern of dietary intake.

Media

• The NAS book goes on to state, "One socializing force that potentially impacts children̵7;s eating behavior is the media. Today̵7;s youth live in a media-saturated environment." Since your child usually desires foods and brands with which he is familiar, TV, print, email and Internet ads exponentially expand her brand awareness by exposing her to far more products than you have in your home. Catchy tunes and appealing visuals hook your child into craving the particular brand of whatever product is being advertised.

Emotional

• Food is a common way to deal with emotional issues such as stress or depression. Just like adults, your child may react to difficulties at school or at home or with friends by over or under eating. According to "Food Marketing to Children," "Greater stress was associated with eating higher-fat foods, less fruit and vegetable intake, more frequent snacking, and skipping breakfast," irrespective of gender, weight, socioeconomic status and ethnicity.