ArticleThe international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity2019
Do physical activity and screen time mediate the association between European fathers' and their children's weight status? Cross-sectional data from the Feel4Diabetes-study.
Article in The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers.
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Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed.
- Effects of a family-based lifestyle intervention on co-physical activity and other health-related outcomes of fathers and their children: the 'Run Daddy Run' intervention.BMC public health · 2023Trial
- Tracking BMI Changes in Parent-Child Dyads: Insights From the Feel4Diabetes Study.Pediatric obesity · 2026Article
- The predictive relationship between parents' perceptions of physical activity and children's physical literacy.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- A qualitative study into the perceptions and needs of fathers with a migration background on parenting regarding energy balance-related behaviors.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Self-reported lifestyle behaviours in families with an increased risk for type 2 diabetes across six European countries: a cross-sectional analysis from the Feel4Diabetes-study.BMC endocrine disorders · 2022Article
- Prospective Associations between Maternal and Child Diet Quality and Sedentary Behaviors.Nutrients · 2021Article
- A Family-Based Lifestyle Intervention Focusing on Fathers and Their Children Using Co-Creation: Study Protocol of the Run Daddy Run Intervention.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Article
- Ranking of a wide multidomain set of predictor variables of children obesity by machine learning variable importance techniques.Scientific reports · 2021Article
- Association Between Maternal Lifestyle and Risk of Metabolic Syndrome in Offspring-A Cross-Sectional Study From China.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2020Article
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Authors and funding
16 authors.
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Abstract
backgroundMost research on parenting and childhood obesity and obesity-related behaviours has focused on mothers while fathers have been underrepresented. Yet, recent literature has suggested that fathers uniquely influence their children's lifestyle behaviours, and hence could also affect their weight status, but this has not yet been scientifically proven. Therefore, the present study aimed to determine whether the association between fathers' weight status and their children's weight status is mediated by fathers' and children's movement behaviours (i.e. physical activity (PA) and screen time (ST)).
methodsCross-sectional data of 899 European fathers and their children were analyzed. Fathers/male caregivers (mean age = 43.79 ± 5.92 years, mean BMI = 27.08 ± 3.95) completed a questionnaire assessing their own and their children's (mean age = 8.19 ± 0.99 years, 50.90% boys, mean BMI
resultsThe present study showed a (partial) mediation effect of fathers' PA and children's PA (but not father's ST and children's ST) on the association between fathers' BMI and children's BMI (model for PA; coefficient: 0.001, 95% CI: [0.0001, 0.002]; model for ST; coefficient: 0.001, 95% CI: [0.000, 0.002]). Furthermore, fathers' movement behaviours (PA and ST) were positively associated with their children's movement behaviours (PA and ST) (model for PA, coefficient: 0.281, SE: 0.023, p < 0.001; model for ST, coefficient: 0.345, SE: 0.025, p < 0.001).
conclusionsThese findings indicate that the influence of fathers on their children's weight status partially occurs through the association between fathers' PA and children's PA (but not their ST). As such, intervening by focusing on PA of fathers but preferably of both members of the father-child dyad (e.g. engaging fathers and their children in co-PA) might be a novel and potentially effective strategy for interventions aiming to prevent childhood overweight and obesity. Longitudinal studies or intervention studies confirming these findings are however warranted to make meaningful recommendations for health intervention and policy.
trial registrationThe Feel4Diabetes-study is registered with the clinical trials registry http://clinicaltrials.gov , ID: 643708 .
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