Concordância entre dados antropométricos reportados vs. medidos e relação com as práticas parentais alimentares em idade pré-escolar

The present study aimed to analyze the agreement between the parent-reported and measured children’s anthropometric data (weight, height, respective BMI and BMI  z -score calculated), as well as their relationship with parental feeding practices. Seventy-one families with children between 2 and 6 years of age participated in the study. There was a discrepancy between parent-reported and measured data for 45,5% of the children. Bidirectional effects were found between the practice  restriction for weight  and parent-reported height and weight, as well as between the practice  pressure to eat  and parent-reported weight, BMI and BMI  z -score. Results suggest that incorrect parents’ perceptions of the child’s weight status may lead to higher levels of negative parental feeding practices, with an impact on children’s weight. On the other hand, parents and children influence each other, therefore parents are reactive to the children’s weight, but they also influence it.