MONDAY, May 19, 2003 (HealthDayNews) -- Parents need to remember they're important role models for their children's eating habits, says the American Dietetic Association (ADA).
A survey of 1,230 parents and children by the ADA Foundation found parents have more potential to influence their children's eating habits than anyone else. The Family Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey asked about the parents' and children's attitudes and behavior regarding weight, eating habits and physical activity.
Children aged 8 to 12 said their top role models were:
- Mother - 23 percent.
- Father - 17.4 percent.
- No role model or unsure - 13.2 percent.
- Sports celebrity - 8.3 percent.
For children aged 13 to 17 years old, the top responses were:
- Mother - 13.8 percent.
- No role model or unsure - 13.4 percent.
- Sports celebrity - 11.9 percent.
- Father - 11.3 percent.
The survey found girls were more likely to identify their mother as a role model, while boys more often selected their father. Actresses, actors and music celebrities were also named as role models by the children.
"These findings underscore the importance of a parent's involvement in helping their children make good choices in life, including dietary choices," ADA spokesperson Sheah Rarback says in a news release.
"Research has found strong links especially between the food mothers eat and the choices made by their children. And children's eating behaviors are influenced by such family-related factors as the number of meals eaten together. By eating healthy foods themselves and making sure to offer them to their children, parents can give their kids opportunities to learn to like a variety of nutritious foods," Rarback says in the release.
She also notes the survey found that the role of parents as role models decreased as children grew older. That offers more evidence that parents have to positively influence their children at an early age.
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