An Examination of Home Environmental Factors Affecting Childrenʼs Eating Habits from a Parentʼs Perspective

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to quantitatively examine the relationship between eating habits in the home of elementary school children and factors related to their parentsʼ eating attitudes including the home environment. Ordinal logistic regression analysis was performed using the responses of 501 people in their 20 s to 50s who lived in Ishikawa Prefecture and had children of elementary school age as data.

The results of the analysis include the following. Children were less likely to be picky when their parents talked more about school lunches (p < 0.001), when they valued homemade tastes (p < 0.05), and when they gave snacks less frequently (p < 0.01). The more parents talked with their children about school lunches (p < 0.001), the more they valued opportunities to eat homemade foods (p < 0.01) and local products (p < 0.05), and the less frequent snacks given (p < 0.01), the less likely their children were to leave leftovers. The more parents talked with their children about school lunches (p < 0.001) and the more they valued the taste of homemade meals (p < 0.01), the more likely their children were to give thanks at meal time. The more frequently parents talked about school meals with their children (p < 0.001), the more likely children were to help with meals when their mothers were employed (p < 0.01). Single mother families, families of three or more generations, and annual household income did not significantly affect childrenʼs eating habits.