Ruling with an iron fist could make your child pack on pounds

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-03/aha-rwa031314.php

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE: 19-Mar-2014

Contact: Darcy Spitz
Darcy.Spitz@heart.org
212-878-5940
American Heart Association

Ruling with an iron fist could make your child pack on pounds

American Heart Association Meeting Report

If you're rigid with rules and skimpy on affection and dialogue with your kids, they have a greater chance of being obese, according to research presented at the American Heart Association's Epidemiology & Prevention/Nutrition, Physical Activity & Metabolism Scientific Sessions 2014.

Researchers followed a nationally representative group of 37,577 Canadian children aged 0 to 11. They compared kids whose parents are generally affectionate, have reasonable discussions about behavior with their child and set healthy boundaries (authoritative) with those whose parents were strict about limits without much dialogue or affection (authoritarian).

The latter group had a 30 percent higher chance of being obese among kids 2 to 5 years old and a 37 percent higher chance among kids 6 to 11 years.

"Parents should at least be aware of their parenting style," said Lisa Kakinami, Ph.D., a post-doctoral epidemiologist at McGill University in Montreal. "If you're treating your child with a balance of affection and limits — these are the kids who are least likely to be obese."

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Researchers also found that poverty was associated with childhood obesity. But parenting style affected obesity regardless of income level.

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