Brief Summary of Minutes of Annual Meeting

Brief summary of minutes of annual meeting:

The 2021-2022 W4003 annual meeting was held on 7/20/2022 virtually via Zoom online conferencing.

Attendees included:

Banna, Jinan (jcbanna@hawaii.edu), University of Hawaii @ Manoa

Gunther, Carolyn (Gunther.22@osu.edu), Ohio State University

Hopkins, Laura (lhopkins@bw.edu), Baldwin Wallace University

Jones, Blake (blake.jones@byu.edu), Brigham Young University

Lora, Karina (Klora@email.gwu.edu), George Washington University

Monroe-Lord, Lillie (lmonroelord@udc.edu), University of the District of Columbia

Reicks, Marla (mreicks@umn.edu), University of Minnesota

Richards, Rickelle (Rickelle_richards@byu.edu), Brigham Young University

Wong, Siew Sun (Siewsun.wong@oregonstate.edu), Oregon State University

2022-2023 Chair (Marla Reicks), 2022-2023 Chair-Elect (Laura Hopkins), 2022-2023 Secretary (Grace Shearrer), Past Chair (Lillie Monroe-Lord)

1. Siew Sun Wong reported on her attendance at an awards presentation of the Western Association of Agricultural Experiment Station Directors meeting June 29, 2022 to accept an Award of Excellence in Multistate Research on behalf of all members.
2. Membership Directory: We updated our membership directory on our Google Drive to include active members with updated contact information.
3. Bylaws: Members were asked to review group bylaws on our Google Drive for discussion at a later monthly meeting.
4. Publications: Lead authors reported on papers under review or in preparation. A qualitative report on changes in independent eating occasion (iEOs) parenting practices during the COVID-19 pandemic is under review by the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior. A quantitative paper on associations among parenting practices and adolescent iEO dietary intake is under review by the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Four additional publications based on Objective 1 Survey data are in preparation.
5. Digital communications: Leads reviewed potential plans and progress on types of digital communication components proposed to meet Objective 2 (mobile app, virtual parent coaching component, snack calendar and cooking courses). Members discussed use of an intervention mapping protocol to identify program and behavioral performance objectives and personal determinants based on survey results. This protocol will also be used to identify theory-based methods and strategies to operationalize theory. The intervention map will be based on survey results, supportive literature and theory, and include study design and timeline for identifying digital communication components, their development and testing.
6. Grant funding: Members decided to complete the intervention mapping procedures, and develop and test digital communication components to provide preliminary data in preparation for the development of possible grant proposals.
7. Members nominated Marla Reicks (Chair), Laura Hopkins (Chair-Elect), and Grace Shearrer (Secretary) to serve in leadership positions for 2022-2023 term. Lillie Monroe-Lord will serve as Past Chair. We discussed holding the next annual meeting in April 2023 in-person or virtually for project and manuscript updates, proposal development for extramural funding to support our work, and initial planning for a Multistate proposal to continue the work proposed in the W4003 project.
8. Annual meeting dates and locations for 2023: Members agreed to express preferences via a poll, followed by planning for the annual meeting based on preferred location and dates.

Accomplishments for 2021-2022:

Background: Current literature shows that the home food environment including food-related parenting practices influence and shape the dietary habits of adolescents (Zeinstra et al., 2010; Yee et al., 2017; Zeigler et al., 2021). Most of this research has focused on dietary habits involving meals with family members under the supervision of adult caregivers. Less is known about how caregivers influence adolescent dietary intake during independent eating occasions (iEOs) when adolescents are not supervised by caregivers. Studies have demonstrated associations between eating alone among adolescents and intake of high energy density foods including snacks and with overweight/obesity (Reicks et al., 2019; Shirasawa et al. 2018). Our group used pictorial and interview data from low-income, multiethnic adolescents and parents to describe iEOs as primarily snacks characterized by fruit, sweets and dairy product consumption based on preferences and availability (Banna et al., 2020). Our survey study identified associations between parenting practices and adolescent healthy and unhealthy iEO dietary intake among a sample of low-income, multiethnic families (under review).

Banna J, Richards R, Jones B, et al. Describing independent eating occasions among low-income adolescents. Int J Env Res Public Health. 2020;17(3):981. doi: 10.3390/ijerph17030981.

Reicks M, Davey C, Anderson AK, et al. Frequency of eating alone is associated with adolescent dietary intake, perceived food-related parenting practices and weight status:

Cross-sectional FLASHE Study Results. Public Health Nutr. 2019;22(9):1555-1566. doi: 10.1017/S1368980019000107.

Shirasawa T, Ochiai H, Yoshimoto T, et al. Effects of eating dinner alone on overweight in Japanese adolescents: A cross-sectional survey. BMC Pediatr. 2018;18:36.

Yee AZH, Lwin MO, Ho SS. The influence of parental practices on child promotive and preventive food consumption behaviors: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2017;14(1):47.

Ziegler AM, Kasprzak CM, Mansouri TH, et al. An ecological perspective of food choice and eating autonomy among adolescents. Front Psychol. 2021;12:654139. Zeinstra GG, Koelen MA, Kok FJ, et al. Parental child-feeding strategies in relation to Dutch children’s fruit and vegetable intake. Public Health Nutr. 2010;13(6):787-796.

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 iEOs 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.

Instructions for the report: Please indicate significant evidence of linkages both internal to the project/committee and to external peer groups, stakeholders, clientele, and other multistate activities. The report should also reflect on the items that stakeholders want to know, or want to see. The committee should describe plans for the coming year in no more than one or two short paragraphs.

Short-term Outcomes:

Over the past year, we completed analysis of interview data with low-income, multi-ethnic adolescents and parents about how the COVID-19 pandemic influenced food-related parenting practices around adolescent iEOs. We submitted a manuscript for publication to report findings. Overall, results from parents suggested that adolescent iEO frequency increased during COVID-19 with the potential for increased intake of unhealthy snacks, yet the parenting practices used to influence iEOs remained stable. Families experienced having more time and family meals together. Some families experienced changes in their food environment, which negatively affected eating habits.

Over the past year, we also completed survey data collection from 622 low-income, multi-ethnic adolescent/parent dyads across the US. Adolescents and parents reported frequency of parenting practices and adolescents reported food and beverage intake during iEOs. We completed data analysis, and submitted a research brief for publication to report findings. Structural and autonomy support parenting practices were positively associated with both healthy and unhealthy food intake by adolescents during iEOs. Interventions to improve dietary intake of adolescents during iEOs could promote practices positively associated with intake of healthy foods.

Outcomes of these projects will be shared with nutrition and health professionals via publications and presentations to inform the development of interventions to improve parenting practices, which in turn, can positively influence eating habits of adolescents during iEOs to meet dietary recommendations and promote healthy weight.

Outputs: Outputs delivered by our research project include a questionnaire to assess parenting practices with acceptable psychometric characteristics, survey results from 622 adolescent/parent dyads based on the questionnaire, and a presentation and publications for nutrition and public health professionals centered on food-related parenting practices that influence dietary intake during adolescent iEOs.

Activities: Activities include interview and survey data collection, analysis and reporting regarding parenting practices and adolescent dietary intake during iEOs. Lead authors and writing team members have analyzed interview and survey data from parent/adolescent dyads to determine how 1) the COVID-19 pandemic affected the home food environment and adolescent dietary intake during iEOs, 2) parenting practices were associated with healthy and unhealthy food intake during adolescent iEOs, and 3) demographic characteristics affected the frequency of iEOs and foods/beverages consumed by adolescents during iEOs.

Future activities will involve development and testing of digital communication intervention components to promote parenting practices that support healthy food choices among adolescents during iEOS. Project members have previously developed and tested digital communications that can be adapted to modify adolescent dietary intake during iEOs via promotion of positive parenting practices including a snack planning calendar tool and cooking courses.

We will use an intervention mapping protocol to identify program and behavioral performance objectives and personal determinants based on survey results. We will determine whether digital communications will target specific parenting practices and adolescent eating behaviors or food groups based on survey results and which behavior change theory should be operationalized. Digital communications which best address the identified objectives and outcomes will be developed. Pilot interventions will be implemented and tested for feasibility and preliminary effectiveness. The resulting preliminary data will be used to prepare grant proposals to obtain funding for larger implementation and testing.

Milestones (2019-2024):

To develop and test a questionnaire with acceptable psychometric properties by fall 2021.

To implement the main survey by fall 2021.

To analyze survey data; evaluate results; determine parenting practices exhibiting most impact on early adolescents’ iEO intakes and behaviors, and develop manuscripts by spring 2022.

To plan and develop digital communications intervention components based survey data such as parent and adolescent apps that serve as an organizing framework for virtual parent coaching/supervising, preparing snacks, and planning snacks by fall 2023.

To design, implement and evaluate a pilot intervention based on the digital communications developed by fall 2023.

To report results via manuscripts, develop draft grant proposals to implement the intervention among a broad range of participants by fall 2023.

Publications: Peer reviewed manuscripts

Submitted

Gunther C, Richards R, Banna J, Reicks M, Wong SS, Ballejos M, Lora KR, Topham G, Jones B, Catherine, Schier H, Monroe-Lord L, Anderson A, Hopkins L. Adolescent independent eating occasions (iEOs), dietary intake, and parenting practices during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative study of parents and adolescents from low-income households. J Nutr Educ Behav, submitted 7-18-22.

Reicks M, Lora K, Jun, Y, Monroe-Lord L, Topham G, Jones B, Kojo Anderson A, Gunther C, Hopkins L, Richards R, Wong SS. Associations among independent eating occasion-specific parenting practices and adolescent dietary intake during these occasions. J Acad Nutr Diet, submitted 8-5-22.

Published

Monroe-Lord L, Anderson A, Jones BL, Richards R, Reicks M, Gunther C, Banna J, Topham GL, Lora KR, Wong SS, Ballejos M, Hopkins L, Arkakani A. Relationship between family racial/ethnic backgrounds, parenting practices and styles, and adolescent eating behaviors. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2022;19:7388. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19127388   

Monroe-Lord L, Jones BL, Richards R, Reicks M, Gunther C, Banna J, Topham G, Anderson A, Lora K, Wong SS, Ballejos M, Hopkins L, Ardakani A. Parenting practices and adolescent eating behaviors in African American families. Int J Env Res Public Health 2022;19:110. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19010110

Presentations

Reicks M, Anderson AK, Ballejos M, Banna J, Jones BL, Gunther C, Hopkins L, Lora K, Monroe-Lord L, Richards R, Topham G, Wong SS. Adolescent independent eating occasions and dietary intake during independent eating occasions by personal and household characteristics. J Nutr Educ Behav. 2022;54(7S):S29.