SAES-422 Multistate Research Activity Accomplishments Report

Sections

Status: Approved

Basic Information

Participants

1. Anderson, Alex (fianko@uga.edu), University of Georgia 2. Ballejos, Miriam (miriam.s.ballejos.civ@mail.mil), University of Washington 3. Banna, Jinan (jcbanna@hawaii.edu), University of Hawaii @ Manoa 4. Gunther, Carolyn (gunther.22@osu.edu), Ohio State University 5. Jones, Blake (blake.jones@byu.edu), Brigham Young University 6. Lora, Karina R (klora@email.gwu.edu), George Washington University 7. Monroe-Lord, Lillie (lmonroelord@udc.edu), University of the District of Columbia 8. Reicks, Marla (mreicks@umn.edu), University of Minnesota 9. Richards, Rickelle (Rickelle_richards@byu.edu), Brigham Young University 10. Topham, Glade (gtopham@ksu.edu), Kansas State University 11. Wong Siew Sun (Siewsun.wong@oregonstate.edu), Oregon State University

The 2019-2020 W4003 annual meeting was held from 03/11/2020 to 03/12/2020 at University of Hawaii, which was the home university to Jinan Banna.

 

Attendees included:

  1. Anderson, Alex (fianko@uga.edu), University of Georgia1
  2. Ballejos, Miriam (miriam.s.ballejos.civ@mail.mil), Washington State
  3. Banna, Jinan (jcbanna@hawaii.edu), University of Hawaii @ Manoa
  4. Gunther, Carolyn (gunther.22@osu.edu), Ohio State University
  5. Jones, Blake (blake.jones@byu.edu), Brigham Young University
  6. Lora, Karina R (klora@email.gwu.edu), George Washington University2  
  7. Monroe-Lord, Lillie (lmonroelord@udc.edu), University of the District of Columbia3
  8. Reicks, Marla (mreicks@umn.edu), University of Minnesota
  9. Richards, Rickelle (Rickelle_richards@byu.edu), Brigham Young University
  10. Topham, Glade (gtopham@ksu.edu), Kansas State University4
  11. Wong Siew Sun (Siewsun.wong@oregonstate.edu), Oregon State University

 

12019-20 Chair-Elect, 22019-20 Chair, 32019-2020 Secretary, 4Past Chair

 

Annual Meeting Accomplishments:

  • We discussed the Qualtrics pilot study conducted with 40 parent-child dyads in fall 2019. The pilot study provided information on ease/difficult in responding to the questions, and test time.
  • We made final plans and scheduled the Qualtrics survey, originally scheduled for Spring-Summer 2020, to Fall 2020 due to the COVID pandemic.
  • We discussed and agreed on submitting an application for the Experimental Station Section Award for Excellence in Multistate Research for the best multistate project in March 2021. 
  • We discussed submitting a proposal for external funding for the Digital Communications to support the group research endeavors.
  • We discussed Objective 1 papers. Out of the eight papers proposed, three were published. The group agreed to work on submitting three papers for publication.
  • We proposed 5 papers with data from the Qualtrics survey to be conducted in fall 2020 (Objective 2).
  • We decided on Washington DC as location for the 2021 annual meeting.
  • Members nominated Alex K. Anderson (Chair), and Lillie Monroe-Lord (Chair-Elect), and Miriam Ballejos (Secretary) to serve in leadership positions for the 2020-21 term. Karina Lora will serve as Past Chair. The next annual meeting is scheduled at the U of the District of Columbia-George Washington University March 17-19, 2021. Lillie Monroe-Lord and Karina Lora will serve as meeting hosts and Alex K. Anderson will chair the 2021 meeting.

Accomplishments

Accomplishments for 2019-2020

 

Background

Information is limited regarding the frequency of independent eating occasions (iEOs) among early adolescents, how food choices made during these occasions affect overall diet quality and weight status, and how food parenting practices influence early adolescent food choices during iEOs. Several studies have shown that more frequent iEOs have a negative association with dietary intake and weight status among adolescents. For example, in a nationwide sample of U.S. adolescents (12-17 years) based on the Family Life, Activity, Sun, Health and Eating (FLASHE) Study data, eating alone was associated with greater intake of junk food and sugary beverages, lower home availability of fruits and vegetables, lower perceived parent support, and overweight/obesity (Reicks et al., 2019). A Japanese study reported that eating dinner alone was associated with overweight in adolescent girls but not boys (Shirasawa et al., 2018). These studies did not specifically address low-income, multiethnic parents and early adolescents. In addition, food frequency questionnaires (FFQs) are commonly used in survey studies to assess usual overall dietary intake over a specified period. However, tested FFQs to assess dietary intake for specific types of eating occasions, such as iEOs do not exist. Accomplishment of the objectives for W-4003 will provide a better understanding of the relationships between food parenting practices and dietary intake of low-income, multiethnic early adolescents during iEOs and inform the development of interventions to promote positive parenting practices that may assist in obesity prevention.

 

Project Objectives

  1. Examine the association between key parenting practices and positive eating behaviors during iEOs among low-income, multi-ethnic early adolescents.
  2. Develop digital communications for parents and/or early adolescents such as mobile apps, virtual parent coaching/supervision, virtual cooking experiences, and online planning tools that promote parenting practices that support healthy food choices during independent eating occasions among early adolescents (11-14 years).
  3. Implement and evaluate a pilot intervention for parents and early adolescents (11-14 years) to promote positive parenting practices during independent eating occasions and to improve early adolescent dietary intake during these occasions based on digital communications developed in Objective 2.
  4. Prepare a grant proposal to revise and implement a full-scale intervention and disseminate findings to health professionals.

 

Main Accomplishments

The main accomplishment of the 2019-2020 project year of the W4003 group were:

  1. We conducted pre-pilot testing of the parent and adolescent questionnaires for collection of quantitative data as part of Objective 1 of the project with a small convenience sample of parent-teen dyads (n=11) from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds. The focus of the questionnaires was how caregivers and youth approach iEOs. Findings indicated that the average completion time was 30 minutes. Eight children reported it very easy to complete, one said it was not easy, and two said it was somewhat easy. Ten children said the length was just about right and one child said it was too long. As for parents, seven one said it was very easy to complete, one said it was easy, one said somewhat easy, and one said somewhat difficult. As for length, eight parents said just about right and two said extremely long.
  2. After pre-pilot testing, we pilot tested the questionnaires with 206 parent/adolescent dyads recruited from a Qualtrics Panelist Database. We used exploratory factor analysis to identify 6 parallel scales for parents and youth with acceptable internal consistency and test-retest reliability. The scales included parenting practices that could influence food choices during adolescents’ independent eating occasions based on teaching, modeling, making foods/beverages available, monitoring and setting expectations for intake. We will use the scales to examine the relationships between parenting practices and adolescent-reported intake during independent eating occasions and overall dietary intake from 400 parent-adolescent dyads as part of W3003 Objective 2 (currently W-4003 Objective 1).
  3. To examine relationships between parenting practices and adolescent intake during independent eating occasions, we revised and tested the 27 food frequency questions (FFQ) used in the Family Life, Activity, Sun, and Healthy Eating (FLASHE) Study by adolescents (12-17 years). Following the original FLASHE FFQ, we tested the following questions to determine frequency of each food/beverage item during iEOs: During the past 7 days, how many times did you eat fruit like apples, bananas or melon, etc.?, during the past 7 days, how many times did you eat fruit when your main caregiver was around? And during the past 7 days, how many times did you eat fruit when your main caregiver was not around? We used cognitive interviewing methods to test the FFQ with a sample of 9 multicultural youth (6 males, 3 females) during Summer and Fall 2019. On average youth had 1-2 iEO per day, adolescents indicated the questions were easy to answer. Responses to the overall FFQ and the follow up questions about when the main caregiver was around and was not around were consistent based on the types of foods and beverages consumed, times when the main caregiver was around and not around, and by occasion.
  4. We published 3 papers describing previous and current work.

 

Progress throughout the year was facilitated through monthly web conferences with the full group and additional subgroup meetings as necessary.

Impacts

  1. Over the past 20 years families have been found to eat fewer meals together, resulting in adolescents eating more often without their caregiver present. Little is known about how parents influence their teens’ iEOs. Scientists from 8 states and the District of Columbia with diverse expertise and backgrounds have combined efforts as part of a multistate research project to identify key parenting practices that promote positive eating behaviors during iEOs among low-income, multiethnic early adolescents. Several team findings this year made an important impact on what we know about this relationship, which will inform the development of digital communications to improve adolescent eating behaviors in our future work.
  2. Among a convenience sample of low-income early adolescents (10–13 years, n = 46), we described independent eating occasions (iEOs), environmental context, foods selected and reasons for selection, and parental rules about foods consumed. Early adolescents frequently made independent food choices. The majority of the iEOs were snack occasions taking place at home with foods that were self-prepared. Common reasons for food selection during iEOs were convenience, preferences and availability. Parental rules about foods consumed during iEOs were intended to prevent youth from eating too much and to restrict certain foods. Understanding choices made within the environmental context may allow parents to promote healthy eating habits among youth in this age group through positive food parenting practices.
  3. We developed six parallel parent and adolescent scales to assess food parenting practices around adolescent iEOs that showed good internal consistency and reliability among a sample of 206 low-income, ethnically diverse parent/early adolescent dyads. These scales may be used to determine which parenting practices should be addressed in interventions we plan to develop and deliver via digital communications to improve adolescent food and beverage consumption during iEOs.
  4. We identified the most common practices used to influence iEOs among low-income parents (n = 49) and early adolescent children (aged 10-13 years; n = 44) from 10 US states and the District of Columbia. Parents reported setting rules and expectations and managing availability or accessibility as commonly used practices. Other practices included teaching, pressuring to eat, monitoring, and modeling. Children reported that their parents had rules about what they could or could not eat during iEOs and that they used specific strategies (eg, call or text) to monitor their iEOs.

Publications

  1. Banna J, Richards R, Jones B, Anderson AK, Reicks M, Cluskey M, Gunther C, Hongu NK, Lora K, Misner S, Monroe-Lord L, Topham G, Wong SS, Lim E. Describing Independent Eating Occasions among Low-Income Adolescents. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020 Feb 5;17(3).
  2. Reicks M, Banna J, Anderson AK, Da Silva V, Gunther C, Hongu NK, Jones B, Lora K, Monroe-Lord L, Richards R, Topham G, Wong SS. Development of Parent and Adolescent Questionnaires to Assess Food Parenting Practices That Address Adolescent Consumption During Independent Eating Occasions. J Nutr Educ Behav. 2020 Mar;52(3):307-313.
  3. Gunther C, Reicks M, Banna J, Suzuki A, Topham G, Richards R, Jones B, Lora K, Anderson AK, da Silva V, Penicka C, Hopkins LC, Cluskey M, Hongu N, Monroe-Lord L, Wong SS. Food Parenting Practices That Influence Early Adolescents' Food Choices During Independent Eating Occasions. J Nutr Educ Behav. 2019 Sep;51(8):993-1002.
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