Dietary behaviour in children
The NBU has expertise in the assessment of dietary behaviour in children and has conducted the following projects in this area:
- Predictors of child portion size - previous NBU research suggests that portion size in both preschool and primary school children is better predicted by the amount that parents would serve rather than the amount a child reports that they would consume. In her PhD research, Anca Dobrescu has been exploring parental decisions about feeding (e.g., breast versus formula feeding, weaning style, and how much to serve) and their impact on the development of dietary behaviour in their children. We hope that findings from this research will support the development of evidence-based guidance for caregivers. Anca is supervised by Dani Ferriday.
- In young and older adults, meal size seems to be largely determined by the portion size that is served before a meal begins. As part of her PhD research, Jen Cox has been looking at how this pre-meal planning develops in childhood.
Example publications:
- Potter, C., Ferriday, D., Griggs, R.L., Hamilton-Shield, J.P., Rogers, P.J., Brunstrom, J.M. (2018). Parental beliefs about portion size, not children's own beliefs, predict child BMI. Pediatric Obesity, 13(4), 232-238. Click here to view.
- Cox, J. S., Hinton, E. C., Sauchelli, S., Hamilton-Shield, J. P., Lawrence, N. S., & Brunstrom, J. M. (2021). When do children learn how to select a portion size? Appetite, 164, [105247]. Click here to view.
- Porter, A., Kipping, R. R., Summerbell, C., Dobrescu, A. T., & Johnson, L. (2020). What guidance is there on portion size for feeding preschool aged children (one to five years) in the UK and Ireland? A systematic grey literature review. Obesity Reviews. Click here to view.