Project 467171

The ways in which childhood obesity and nutritional behaviours develop is a complex area to investigate as it involves many different factors. The health of the mother in the preconception period has been highlighted as a critical time that can influence the development of child health and nutrition. Currently, research has found that when a mother has a higher body mass index (BMI) before becoming pregnant, they are more likely to breastfeed for a shorter period and have a child with higher BMI. An area of pre-pregnancy health that still requires further investigation, is looking at whether the mothers pre-pregnancy BMI influences the development of child nutritional behaviours. Child nutritional behaviours developed within the first few years of life can sustain into later life, impacting future health of the child. The purpose of this study is to see if the mothers BMI before pregnancy is associated with child nutritional outcomes (behaviours and dietary patterns) at 18 months to 5 years of age, and whether breastfeeding duration plays a role in the relationship. In this study, children ages 0 to 5 years have been recruited from The Applied Research Group for Kids (TARGet Kids!), a primary care practice-based research network enrolling healthy children and their parents in Ontario, Canada. Mothers BMI and breastfeeding duration will be recorded, and then analysed with the parent reported questionnaire that evaluates child nutritional risk based various eating behaviours and dietary patterns called NutriSTEP. Maternal BMI before pregnancy may be a risk factor for impacting child nutritional outcomes and these study findings can help develop effective pre-pregnancy interventions that promote lifelong healthy nutrition behaviours for children.