Families are critical contexts and units-of-analysis for examining childhood obesity etiology and prevention, because they are the first and most consistent context in which children are socialized around food and weight. This symposium aims to highlight mechanisms by which families influence children's weight and eating behaviors, and to examine whether prevention programs targeting modifiable, family-based risk factors can improve health outcomes, particularly for vulnerable children. By using family theories to characterize nutrition-related behavior, the studies in this symposium show that transdisciplinary collaborations allow for a holistic picture of how families influence, and are influenced by child weight and eating.

Objectives

1) To describe what family mealtime quality is, and how it influences child weight and eating behaviors. 2) To discuss the influence of family dynamics on nutrition-related parenting strategies at the mealtime. 3) To examine mealtime-based and family-centered strategies for improving child eating behavior and weight outcomes.