Korean J Nutr.  2006 Mar;39(2):184-191.

Children's Unbalanced Diet and Parents' Attitudes

• Oh YJ
• Chang YK

Abstract

This study investigated parents' attitude about children's unbalanced diet. The subjects were 1,309 parents that their children attended at kindergarten or child care center in Kyoung-Ki province. The order of dislikes in 'vegetables and fruits' was as follows: all kinds of vegetables (56.5%), beans (17.6%), fruits (5.2%). In 'meat, fish, poultry', the order of dislikes was meats (38.2%), fishes (21.8%), milk (16.4%), eggs (10.0%). In 'cerelas', the order of dislikes was rice (31.0%), rice cakes (14.3%), noodles (11.9%). The several rationalizations for dislikes are 'taste' (19.1%), 'food habit from younger age' (18.4%), 'lack of chances for trying new food' (16.0%) etc. To compared children's ration-alizations for dislikes to their age group, the percentage of 'lack of chances for trying new food', 'strange food shape', 'lack of nutrition education' was significantly higher in 'below 5 years old' (< 5) group than other groups (< 6, < 7) and 'sweety food' was significantly higher in 'below 7 years old' (< 7) group than other groups (< 5, < 6) (p < 0.05). In parents' attitude about children's unbalanced dietary habit, subjects answered that they try to make children understand to eat dislike food (73.9%), develop new recipe for children (14.0%), neglect children's food habit (6.2%). To compared parents' attitude for children's unbalanced diet by parents age, the percentage of 'try to make children understand to eat dislike food' was significantly higher in 'below 30 years old' (< 30) group than other groups (30~35, 35~39, > or = 40) and 'developing new recipe' was significantly higher in 'over 40 years old' (40) group than other groups (< 30, 30~35, 35~39)(p < 0.05). To compared parents' attitude for children's unbalanced diet by parents' occupation, the percentage of 'neglecting' was higher in employed group and 'developing new recipe' was higher in unemployed group than the other group. According to the results of the survey, it is necessary to make new educational materials for employed parents and young children and develop new recipes to use various kind of foods instead of forcing unpleasant foods on the children for the sake of unbalanced diet.

Keyword

preschool children; food preference; parents' perception and attitude

MeSH Terms

Child
Child Care
Child, Preschool
Diet*
Eggs
Fabaceae
Fishes
Food Habits
Food Preferences
Fruit
Humans
Meat
Milk
Occupations
Ovum
Parents
Vegetables