Neural responsivity to food cues varies with food fussiness in adolescents.

Food fussiness (picky eating) increases risk for poor nutrition and eating disorders but its biological underpinnings are not understood. We aimed to investigate behavioral (observed as well as parent- and self-reported), and neural (using functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI)) correlates of food fussiness. Adolescents completed an fMRI task during which they viewed photos of fruits and vegetables [F&V], high energy-density [High-ED] foods, and Non-foods.

The Impact of COVID-19-Related Stress on Diet and Eating Behaviors in US College Students: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic exposed the US population, including college students, to stress posing challenges to psychological and behavioral health. Previous studies have demonstrated that stress can promote unhealthy eating behaviors among college students. This study aimed to examine the relationships of pandemic-related stress with changes in diet and eating behaviors experienced by college students during the Fall 2020 semester.

Concurrent and prospective associations of social media usage with binge eating symptoms in early adolescence.

Objective: This study investigated longitudinal relationships between social media usage and binge eating (BE) in early adolescence and explored potential moderating effects of sex and BMI.

Methods: Data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study, including 1940 participants aged 11 to 12 years at Wave 1, were analyzed over three annual waves. Social media addiction (SMA) scores and time spent on social media were calculated from self-report questionnaires.

GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) levels in dorsal anterior cingulate cortex are negatively associated with food motivation in a pediatric sample.

Food motivation varies between individuals, affecting body weight and risk for eating disorders. Prior neuroimaging studies in youth and adults have revealed functional and structural alterations in the anterior cingulate cortex [ACC] in those with obesity and disordered eating but have not investigated their neurochemical underpinnings. In a sample of 37 children aged 4 to 13 years old, we used Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy [MRS] to assess levels of γ-aminobutyric acid [GABA] - the major inhibitory neurotransmitter in the human brain - quantified relative to creatine in a 27-ml voxel including the dorsal ACC.

The feeding siblings questionnaire (FSQ): Development of a self-report tool for parents with children aged 2-5 years.

Over the last decade, there have been repeated calls to expand the operationalisation of food parenting practices. The conceptualisation and measurement of these practices has been based primarily on research with parent-child dyads. One unexplored dimension of food parenting pertains to the evaluation of practices specific to feeding siblings.

Parental perceptions of body weight and appetite in infants and toddlers with cystic fibrosis.

Nutritional status has clinical relevance and is a target of guidance to parents of children with cystic fibrosis (CF). Growth is routinely monitored in CF clinics but there is no standardized way of assessing appetitive behaviors or parents' perceptions of their children's appetite. Greater understanding of these factors could improve clinical guidance regarding parent feeding behaviors.

The role of fathers in child development from preconception to postnatal influences: Opportunities for the National Institutes of Health Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) program.

A growing body of literature highlights the important role of paternal health and socioemotional characteristics in child development, from preconception through adolescence. Much of this research addresses the indirect effects of fathers, for instance, their influence on maternal behaviors during the prenatal period or via the relationship with their partner. However, emerging evidence also recognizes the direct role of paternal health and behavior for child health and adjustment across development.

Biobehavioral susceptibility for obesity in childhood: Behavioral, genetic and neuroimaging studies of appetite.

Modern food environments are conducive to overeating and weight gain, but not everyone develops obesity. One reason for this may be that individuals differ in appetitive characteristics, or traits, that manifest early in life and go on to influence their behavioral susceptibility to gain and maintain excess weight. Classic studies showing that eating behavior in children can be measured by behavioral paradigms such as tests of caloric compensation and eating in the absence of hunger inspired the development and validation of psychometric instruments to assess appetitive characteristics in children and infants.

Parent-reported child appetite moderates relationships between child genetic obesity risk and parental feeding practices.

Background: Food parenting practices are associated with child weight. Such associations may reflect the effects of parents' practices on children's food intake and weight. However, longitudinal, qualitative, and behavioral genetic evidence suggests these associations could, in some cases, reflect parents' response to children's genetic risk for obesity, an instance of gene-environment correlation.

The Development of Appetite: Tracking and Age-Related Differences in Appetitive Traits in Childhood.

Appetitive traits are associated with body weight. Increased understanding of how appetitive traits evolve from early life could advance research on obesity risk and inform intervention development. We report on tracking and age-related differences in appetitive traits in childhood within the RESONANCE cohort.

Children's eating behaviours and related constructs: conceptual and theoretical foundations and their implications.

Background: There is a substantial body of research on children's eating behaviours (e.g., food responsiveness and fussiness) and related constructs (e.

Bidirectional associations between parental feeding practices, infant appetitive traits and infant BMIz: a longitudinal cohort study.

Background: Little is known about the pathways linking parent feeding practices with appetitive traits and BMIz throughout infancy. This study examined bidirectional associations between parental feeding practices, infant appetitive traits, and infant BMIz.

Methods: Parents (n = 380) of infants aged less than 6 months at baseline reported their feeding practices (using the Feeding Practices and Structure Questionnaire (FPSQ) for infants and toddlers), infant appetitive traits (using the Baby Eating Behaviour Questionnaire) and infant BMIz (parent-reported) at three timepoints (< 6 months, ~ 9 months, ~ 12 months) up to 12 months of age.

Informing Infant Nutrition: Timing of Infant Formula Advice, Infant Formula Choice and Preparation in the First 6 Months of Life.

Objective: To examine the sources and timing of advice formula feeding parents receive and how this and other factors influence the choice of formula product and formula preparation.

Design: Components of a cross-sectional survey.

Setting: A child and family health service in New South Wales, Australia.

Associations of mothers' and fathers' structure-related food parenting practices and child food approach eating behaviors during the COVID pandemic.

Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, many mothers and fathers have spent more time at home with their children, warranting consideration of parenting practices around food during the pandemic as influences on obesogenic eating behaviors among children. Structure-related feeding practices, particularly around snacking, may be particularly challenging yet influential in the pandemic setting. Parent sex and levels of feeding-related co-operation among parents (co-feeding) are understudied potential influences on parent-child feeding relationships.

Infant Appetitive Phenotypes: A Group-Based Multi-Trajectory Analysis.

Examining appetitive traits with person-centered analytical approaches can advance the understanding of appetitive phenotype trajectories across infancy, their origins, and influences upon them. The objective of the present study was to empirically describe appetitive phenotype trajectories in infancy and examine the associations with infant and parent factors. In this longitudinal cohort study of Australian infants, parents completed three online surveys ~3 months apart, beginning when the infant was <6 months.

Binge Watching during COVID-19: Associations with Stress and Body Weight.

Binge watching is becoming increasingly common and may impact energy balance and body weight. The COVID-19 pandemic has created conditions conducive to binge watching and increased stress. We investigated relationships between COVID-related stress and binge watching behaviors, and potential variation in this relationship by body weight.

Acculturation, food-related and general parenting, and body weight in Chinese-American children.

Parents' food-related and general parenting behaviors may vary according to cultural background, with consequences for child eating behavior and weight. A better understanding of food-related and general parenting behaviors adopted by Chinese-American parents, and the relationships of all of these behaviors with child weight, is essential to aid the development of culturally appropriate interventions to prevent obesity in Chinese-American children. We investigated cross-sectional relationships of acculturation with parental feeding behaviors assessed with the Child Feeding Questionnaire, Parent Feeding Styles Questionnaire and Caregiver's Feeding Styles Questionnaire, and general parenting behaviors assessed with the Parenting Styles and Dimensions Questionnaire, in a sample of Chinese-American parents of 5-12 year-old children (n = 233).

Preventing child mental health problems in southeastern Europe: Feasibility study (phase 1 of MOST framework).

The prevalence of child emotional and behavioral problems is an international problem but is higher in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) where there are often less mental health supports for families. Parenting programs can be an effective means of prevention, but must be low-cost, scalable, and suitable for the local context. The RISE project aims to systematically adapt, implement, and evaluate a low-cost parenting program for preventing/reducing child mental health problems in three middle-income countries in Southeastern Europe.

Qualitative Exploration of Dimensions of Restrictive Feeding With Australian Mothers of 6-Year-Olds.

Objective: Explore the nature and dimensions of restrictive feeding with mothers of 6-year-olds.

Design: Semistructured interviews with mothers. Conversations were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim.

The influence of COVID-19-related stress on food motivation.

The COVID-19 pandemic and public health measures to reduce its transmission have increased stress. Stress is associated with alterations in eating behavior which may be partly driven by effects on food-related motivation. To investigate effects of COVID-related stress on food motivation, we recruited adults (N = 429; 272 F, 157 M) to complete an online survey via Amazon MTurk in May 2020.

COVID-19 Stress and Food Intake: Protective and Risk Factors for Stress-Related Palatable Food Intake in U.S. Adults.

(1) Background: The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has caused disruptions to what people eat, but the pandemic's impact on diet varies between individuals. The goal of our study was to test whether pandemic-related stress was associated with food intake, and whether relationships between stress and intake were modified by appetitive and cognitive traits. (2) Methods: We cross-sectionally surveyed 428 adults to examine current intake frequency of various food types (sweets/desserts, savory snacks, fast food, fruits, and vegetables), changes to food intake during the pandemic, emotional overeating (EOE), cognitive flexibility (CF), and COVID-19-related stress.

Familial Obesity Risk and Current Excess Weight Influence Brain Structure in Adolescents.

Objective: Obesity risk transmits from parents to children. Underlying neural mechanisms were investigated in this study by evaluating influences of familial obesity risk defined by maternal obesity and influences of current overweight on three indices of brain structure in adolescents.

Methods: In total, 22 lean adolescents with lean mothers (lean low-risk), 25 lean adolescents with mothers with obesity/overweight (lean high-risk), and 36 adolescents with obesity/overweight underwent structural MRI scans for estimation of regional gray and white matter volume and cortical thickness.

Understanding breastfeeding behaviours: a cross-sectional analysis of associated factors in Ireland, the United Kingdom and Australia.

Background: Breastfeeding is a complex behaviour relying on a combination of individual mother and infant characteristics, health systems, and family, community and professional support. Optimal breastfeeding in high-income countries is particularly low. Despite having similar sociocultural backgrounds, breastfeeding rates between Ireland, the United Kingdom (UK) and Australia vary, thus there is a need to understand whether this is due to individual, sociocultural or policy differences.

Interparental Relationship Adjustment, Parenting, and Offspring's Cigarette Smoking at the 10-Year Follow-up.

Familial influences on children's cigarette smoking have been established, yet little is known about whether these influences in childhood relate to offspring's smoking behavior in adolescence. Drawing on prior work showing that children's emotional and behavioral problems (i.e.