Examining the Relationships Between Family Meal Practices, Family Stressors, and the Weight of Youth in the Family

Background Research is limited on how the social environment of the home is related to childhood obesity. Purpose The purpose of this research was to examine the relationships between positive family meal practices, family stressors, and the weight of youth and to examine parental weight status as a moderator of these relationships. Methods The study enrolled 368 parent/child dyads from a Minnesota sample. We used mediation analysis to examine the associations Results Families represented by an overweight parent reported fewer positive family meal practices ( p